Canadian Stem Cell Foundation aims to raise level of awareness and activity for rapidly developing research field

The Canadian Stem Cell Foundation (CSCF) has unveiled an ambitious awareness-raising initiative that aims to promote the field of stem cell research as it enters an important new phase of development. The Stem Cell Charter was launched in September at the World Stem Cell Summit in Baltimore MA and has already attracted the signatures of nearly 2,000 individuals and several national and international institutions.

Spearheaded by renowned McGill Univ researcher Dr Bartha Maria Knoppers, the Charter is the first major deliverable of the CSCF, which was spun off last year from the Stem Cell Network of Centres of Excellence (SCN).

The CSCF was conceived as a strategic mechanism for advancing stem cell research nationally and abroad and has been in the works for more than two years. The foundation has a three-pronged mandate to educate, unify support for stem cell research and eventually launch a strategic research program that would fund high-priority niche areas in collaboration with other funding bodies.

"The intent behind the foundation is about creating a sustainability mechanism for the Stem Cell Network. There's still a lot that needs to be done in terms of educating the public and getting people more informed and engaged," says James Price, who was seconded from the SCN to serve as CSCF's president and CEO. "There's no other national voice for stem cell research other than the Stem Cell Network."

The CSCF is expected to continue well after federal funding of the SCN expires in six years time. It may take on certain legacy activities of the network including its annual scientific meeting and training. SCN provided seed funding, early governance and staff support for the foundation, which secured charitable organization status in Aug/09.

September's World Stem Cell Summit served as the high-profile launching pad for the Stem Cell Charter which has a major web presence complete with video clips of 11 "Rock Star Scientists" who question why more isn't being done to advance the field (www.stemcellcharter.org).

"Stem cell research is at a critical time, a tipping point. The science is moving into a pre-clinical and early clinical period and beyond the basic research and ethical barriers," says Price. "The charter is a pro-active statement of the importance of stem cell science and a principle people can get behind. It's designed as an international initiative."

Price says the response to the charter campaign has been overwhelming. It is almost certain to reach its symbolic goal of 1961 individual signatories by the end of October in honour of the 1961 discovery of stem cells by Canadian scientists Dr Jim Till and Dr Ernest McCulloch. Strong interest from international organizations has resulted in eight signatories to date with another dozen about to sign on.

"The charter is something that can be embraced by everyone," says Price. "Stem cells were discovered by Canadians and we have a long history of international leadership in the field."

Price emphasizes that as the CSCF evolves and begins to fund stem cell research, it will focus on funding gaps that need to be addressed. To that end, it will not duplicate funding currently provided by the granting councils or charities and will typically fund research in partnership with other organizations.

"It's early days and first we need to build capacity," he says. "We need to create programs that other organizations and people can get involve with."

The CSCF is the second major spin-off from the SCN, which has established a reputation as one of the more innovative Networks within the NCE program. In 2006, SCN spun off Aggregate Therapeutics Inc (ATI), which has exclusive first right to negotiate the commercialization of stem cell technologies of 37 Canadian scientists from 16 institutions. SCH transferred ATI to MaRS Discovery District for further development and in 2007 it created its own spin-off — Regium. Both ATI and Regium continue to seek funding but efforts have been hampered by a tough financing environment.

On another front, Canada has joined with the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) through the Cancer Stem Cell Consortium which has received more than $100 million in commitments from its founding partners. CIRM has similar agreements with Germany, the UK, Australia, Spain, Japan and most recently China.

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