Michael Marletta Appointed to Governing Board of California’s Stem Cell Agency

San Francisco, CA –Michael A. Marletta, PhD, President and CEO of The Scripps Research Institute, has been appointed to the Independent Citizens Oversight Committee (ICOC), the governing board of California’s stem cell agency, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM)

“California has led the nation in stem cell research and I’m delighted to be part of an institution that has the potential to change the way we look at and treat disease,” says Dr. Marletta. “Throughout my career my research has focused on the intersection of biology, chemistry and medicine so I hope I will be able to make a valuable contribution to the field of regenerative medicine.”

Dr. Marletta, a renowned biochemist, was named to the ICOC by California State Treasurer Bill Lockyer. He takes one of the seats designated for a representative of a California University under Proposition 71, the voter–approved initiative that created the stem cell agency.

State Treasurer Bill Lockyer said “Dr. Marletta will bring valuable experience and knowledge to the Independent Citizens Oversight Committee and will well serve the people of California as its newest member.”

Dr. Marletta, in addition to being President at CEO at Scripps, is also the Cecil H. and Ida M. Green Professor or Chemistry there. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and Institute of Medicine, and is a former recipient of the prestigious MacArthur Fellowship.

“We are fortunate to have someone of Dr. Marletta’s caliber join our board,” says Jonathan Thomas, Chairman of the ICOC. “His scientific background and leadership skills will be invaluable as CIRM begins to move into the next phase of its operations, moving promising candidate therapies from the laboratory into clinical trials in people.”

Profiles are available for all CIRM board members.

About CIRM: CIRM was established in November 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. A list of grants and loans awarded to date may be seen here: /grants.