U.S. stem cell developers get boost as Democrats look to increase federal funding
WASHINGTON (AP) - Shares of biotech companies working on stem cell-related therapies surged Thursday as Democrats in Congress prepared to promote once again legislation that would increase government-funded research in this area.
House Democrats are expected to propose a bill on Friday that will expand the types of stem cell research that can be funded by the government. In 2001 President George W. Bush said his administration would only allow funding for research using a limited number of stem cell types, and last summer he vetoed a bill passed by Congress that would have eased those limits. It was the first and only veto of his presidency.
With a new majority in Congress -- and support from many Republicans -- House Democrats have promised to push the legislation through in their first 100 hours in power. A House vote is scheduled for next Thursday.
If Bush rejects the bill again, the 100-member Senate is believed to have enough support to overturn his veto with a two-thirds majority vote, though the 435-member House would have a more difficult time getting the necessary votes.
Even if the current legislation does not get through, stem cell research advocates say lawmakers could get it passed down the road by attaching it to a critical bill that the president would have to sign.
``We're hopeful that the president learned something from the election results, but if he didn't and chooses to veto this bill again, that doesn't mean the game is up,'' said Sean Tipton, President of the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research.
Many states previously decided not to wait for federal money to fund stem cell research. California's Institute for Regenerative Medicine is expected to deliver $181 million this year to scientists working on stem cell-related cures in that state. New Jersey, Connecticut, and Maryland are among the other states that have designated funding for stem cell researchers.
With the possibility of increased funding on the horizon, traders sent the price of Stemcells Inc. stock up more than 15 percent. Shares dipped 2 cents in after hours trading Thursday after rising 45 cents, or 16.9 percent, to close at $3.11 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.
In November the company helped perform the first ever transplant of cells from an aborted fetus into a living patient as part of an experimental treatment for Batten's disease, a neurological disorder.
Shares of tissue repair developer Aastrom Biosciences rose 1 cent in after hours trading after rising 15 cents, or 12 percent, to close at $1.39 on Nasdaq. The Ann Arbor, Mich.-based company is aiming to use stem cells to regrow bone and regenerate tissue.
Shares of Alameda, Calif.-based Advanced Cell Technology also rose more than 14 percent on the possibility that federal funding could soon flow to the stem cell therapy innovator.
Shares rose 13 cents, or 23.6 percent, to close at 68 cents on the over-the-counter market.
Last summer Advanced Cell Technology came to national attention after it revealed a technique to grow stem cells from a single human cell taken from a human embryo. Prior methods for harvesting stem cells require the destruction of human embryos, which many Americans, including Bush, see as unethical.
Fellow California biotech company Cord Blood America saw its shares rise 2.9 cents, or 30 percent, to close at 12 cents on the over-the-counter market. The company collects and preserves umbilical cord blood from newborn infants for use in future stem cell treatment. Cord Blood issued a release Thursday stating that blood collected by the company was used for the first time in the treatment of childhood leukemia by doctors at the University of Pennsylvania.
