Associated Press
MADISON, WI — The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation is discussing concerns over use of its stem cells by a California institute hoping to disburse $3 billion in stem cell research grants.
The outcome of discussions with the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, a state entity, could affect the development of stem cell therapies far beyond the two states, both parties say.
“We don’t want to impede research. We want to be a partner,” said Carl Gulbrandsen, managing director of WARF, the research and patenting arm of the University of Wisconsin. “We also want to make sure work that is done in Wisconsin is respected.”
At issue is the fact that the University of Wisconsin owns two patents on embryonic cells. UW-Madison researcher James Thomson first figured out how to grow them in his lab in 1998.
The patents cover not only the cells but also the technique Thomson used to derive and grow them. That means most stem cell research across the country falls under the foundation’s restrictions.
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine is trying to distribute $3 billion in stem cell research grants throughout the state an effort approved by voters two years ago.
In February, CIRM said universities and nonprofit institutions that receive the grants must give back to the state one-fourth of royalties on discoveries that generate more than $500,000.
But WARF said that it does not want private companies to profit if it does not receive some money.
At a biotech meeting in San Francisco in March, WARF attorney Elizabeth Donley said CIRM‘s demands meant the research was commercialized. She said the Wisconsin foundation could assert its patents and seek license fees and payments from the commercial partners of grantees, such as the California institute.
WARF‘s actions could bring a halt to California’s program, said Ed Penhoet, vice chairman of CIRM‘s oversight committee.
“Theoretically, could they close down research activity in California? Yes,” he told the Los Angeles Times.
A nonprofit watchdog group in California, the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, said CIRM should challenge WARF‘s patents in court.
“It would truly be a shame if a research organization in Wisconsin threw up a
blockade to vital, publicly funded research in California,” John Simpson, stem-cell project director for the group, wrote in a letter to WARF.
CIRM has no intentions right now to sue WARF, said Mary Maxon, Penhoet’s deputy. But she said, “we are concerned.”
Gulbrandsen, of WARF, said the foundation is discussing the issue but would not provide details.
The foundation must act on its patents in California to protect its licenses,
he said.
Other lawsuits have blocked distribution of CIRM‘s $3 billion. But CIRM issued special bond notes in April after receiving pledges for funds from foundations and trusts. It awarded $12.1 million in training grants to 16 universities and other institutions in April, but it has yet to award research grants.
Maxon, of CIRM, said the institute could seek an omnibus license with WARF that would apply to all of its grantees and commercial partners.
“We have talked about ways to structure a collaboration,” Gulbrandsen said.
Information from Wisconsin State Journal: http://www.wisconsinstatejournal.com
