Applications Received For CIRM Major Facilities Grants: Application Review Process to Begin November 28th
SAN FRANCISCO, October 25, 2007 The CIRM announced today it has received and accepted 17 applications for Part I of its Major Facilities Grant Program, which will fund the establishment of CIRM facilities to support stem cell research programs across the State.
The objectives of the Major Facilities Grants are:
Funding new facilities and encouraging investments by others in new facilities that are free of any federal funding so as to allow research and development of therapies based on human embryonic stem cell (hESC) and other stem cell approaches to proceed in California without restrictions imposed by the federal government.
Developing stem cell research centers that will expand research capacity and capabilities in California while bringing hESC-related researchers together in a collaborative setting.
Funding new facilities and improvements where research institutions have determined that existing facilities are inadequate or are lacking altogether and thus pose a challenge to the development of therapies and cures for diseases being addressed at these institutions.
Part One of the application will be reviewed in late November by the CIRM Grants Working Group (GWG), which will evaluate the scientific merit of the applicants stem cell research program and its relationship to the proposed facility. Part Two of the application will be reviewed by the Institutes Facilities Working Group (FWG) for the technical and financial merit of the proposal. Both reviews are based on criteria adopted by CIRMs governing body, the Independent Citizens Oversight Committee (ICOC).
The deadline for submission of Part Two applications will be determined and announced in January 2008. The ICOC is expected to approve the CIRM Major Facilities Grants in April 2008.
About CIRM CIRM was established in 2004 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 136 research grants totaling almost $208 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.
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