NEWS
State to draw in stem-cell market
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by Courtney Johnson
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
In keeping with his plans to expand biotechnology research in Wisconsin, Gov. Jim Doyle announced Tuesday the state's new goal to capture at least 10 percent of the stem cell market by the year 2015.
"Experts say that the market for stem cell products could reach as much as $10 billion over the next 10 years, translating into more than 100,000 jobs," Doyle said in a transcript of the press conference held at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee.
To ensure that Wisconsin benefits from the growing stem cell industry, Doyle signed an executive order yesterday that directs the Wisconsin Department of Commerce to spend at least $5 million to recruit the most advanced stem cell companies to Wisconsin.
The executive order is also intended to aid the development of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, a proposed biotechnology complex that has recently been given final approval by the state Building Commission. The institutes will be located on the University of Wisconsin campus on University Avenue.
"In addition to recruiting good-paying jobs for the future economy, Wisconsin has a role to play in exploring the cures that could come from this cutting-edge research," Doyle's spokesman Matt Canter said in a phone interview.
However, Doyle's opponent in the upcoming gubernatorial election, U.S. Rep. Mark Green, R-Wis., expressed some doubt about the ethics of stem cell research.
According to Green's campaign press secretary Rob Vernon, Green supports stem cell research, but only when using adult and umbilical cord stem cells.
"I … believe that we should not create human life simply to destroy it for research purposes," Green said in a release. "Wisconsin can and should be a leader in medical research, and, unlike Gov. Doyle, I don't think we have to sacrifice our values and principles to achieve that status."
Green, however, stressed that he does support investing in medical research that could potentially cure life-threatening diseases like cancer, Parkinson's disease and juvenile diabetes.
At the conference, Doyle mentioned his veto of a bill passed by the Legislature that would have criminalized "some of the most promising scientific techniques used by stem cell researchers."
The bill, called Assembly Bill 499, would have banned all forms of human cloning, and was vetoed by the governor last November.
"I think [Wisconsin] should settle for nothing less than being the stem cell leader for the nation — and the world," Doyle added. "We have got to turn back these senseless attacks on stem cell research.
According to Richard Katsche, associate vice president of public affairs at the Medical College of Wisconsin, Doyle decided to make the announcement in Milwaukee because "he wanted to show that his is an effort that exists not only in Madison but also Milwaukee."
Currently, Wisconsin's biotechnology firms contribute nearly $7 billion to the state economy and have created 22,000 jobs. High-tech products also account for almost a quarter of all Wisconsin exports, according to Doyle.
The first person to isolate a human embryonic stem cell was UW biology professor James Thomson in 1998. Since then, the state has gained recognition for its groundbreaking stem cell research.
