CIRM Announces Series of Town Hall Forums

San Francisco, Calif., February 23, 2009 – The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), the state stem cell agency, is holding a series of Town Forums scheduled for March and April in San Francisco, San Diego, and Los Angeles.

The Town Forums provide an interactive opportunity for people to learn how CIRM is investing Proposition 71 funds to improve human health and about advances in stem cell science from some of the most distinguished researchers in the field.

“California’s support of stem cell research carries a responsibility to keep the public well informed about CIRM’s activities and accomplishments. These Forums are an important part of our public outreach mandate,” stated Marie Csete, CIRM’s Chief Scientific Officer.

Each Forum features three CIRM-funded speakers who will speak briefly on a particular topic, followed by a question and answer period. The speakers will provide an overview of the current state of stem cell research, cell therapy in a particular disease area, and other applications of stem cell science such as safety testing in drug development.

The events are free and open to the public. Seating is limited. To reserve a seat, email name and contact information to:

  • San Francisco, March 18th, Palace Hotel, 6:00 PM: pace2curesSF@cirm.ca.gov
  • San Diego, March 31st, San Diego Museum of Natural History, 6:15 PM: pace2curesSD@cirm.ca.gov
  • Los Angeles, April 22nd, The Davidson Center, 6:30 PM: pace2curesLA@cirm.ca.gov

The events are free and open to the public. Seating is limited; please RSVP to reserve a space (see below for email for each event).

Wednesday, March 18th, Palace Hotel, San Francisco
6:00 – 7:30 PM
2 New Montgomery Street, San Francisco

Renee A Reijo Pera, PhD
Institute for Stem Cell Biology & Regenerative Medicine
Stanford University School of Medicine

Tamara N. Alliston, PhD
University of California San Francisco Cartilage Repair & Regeneration Center

Bruce R. Conklin, MD
Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease
Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco

Please reserve a seat by emailing: pace2curesSF@cirm.ca.gov

Tuesday, March 31st, San Diego Natural History Museum
6:15 – 7:45 PM
1788 El Prado, San Diego

Jeanne Loring, PhD, The Scripps Research Institute
Founding Director, Center for Regenerative Medicine

Stuart Lipton, MD, PhD, Burnham Institute.
Director, Del E. Webb Neuroscience, Aging and Stem Cell Research Center

Mahendra Rao, MD, PhD, Invitrogen
Vice President, Research, Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine

Please reserve a seat by emailing: pace2curesSD@cirm.ca.gov

Wednesday, April 22nd, The Davidson Conference Center, Los Angeles
6:30 – 8:00 PM
3415 South Figueroa Street, Los Angeles

Martin Pera, PhD
Professor and Foundation Director, Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem
Cell Research, USC

Hanna Mikkola, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor, Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, UCLA

Leslie Michels Thompson, PhD.
Director, Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, University of California, Irvine

Please reserve a seat by emailing: pace2curesLA@cirm.ca.gov

About CIRM CIRM was established in early 2005 with the passage of Proposition 71, the California Stem Cell Research and Cures Act. The statewide ballot measure, which provided $3 billion in funding for stem cell research at California universities and research institutions, was overwhelmingly approved by voters, and called for the establishment of an entity to make grants and provide loans for stem cell research,
research facilities, and other vital research opportunities. To date, the CIRM governing board has approved 279 research and facility grants totaling more than $693 million, making CIRM the largest source of funding for human embryonic stem cell research in the world. For more information, please visit www.cirm.ca.gov.

Contact:

Don Gibbons
415-396-9117

Ellen Rose
650-387-8746