The University of Wisconsin-affiliated WiCell Research Institute, the nation's first stem cell bank and leading stem cell research institution, will soon lose one of its top researchers.

WiCell Senior Scientist Ren-He Xu has accepted the position of director at the University of Connecticut's new human embryonic stem cell core laboratory. Xu will also become a UConn faculty member on track to receive tenure.

At UConn, Xu, whose research at WiCell led to the groundbreaking method of culturing embryonic stem cells without the use of animal tissues, will face the challenge of essentially building a stem cell research laboratory from the ground up.

And with the approval of Connecticut legislation last summer, Xu will have a nice foundation.

The legislation will allocate $100 million for stem cell research over the next 10 years. Additionally, it will allow scientists to use that funding to work on stem cell lines currently prohibited by federal restrictions.

"It's a very good opportunity," Xu, who will begin his new role at UConn in April, said. "I'll have more flexibility to closely manage cell lines and to do research on many things that are restricted by federal policy."

Xu was the first employee hired by the WiCell Institute, which was established in 1999. Shortly before the institute's founding, its Scientific Director, James Thomson, led the UW research team that was the first in the world to successfully isolate human embryonic stem cell lines.

In the more than six years since, WiCell has expanded to 32 researchers, and Xu said he believes he is leaving the institute in a good situation.

"There's [sic] a lot of experts here," Xu said. "It's a good time for us to depart."

WiCell spokesperson Andy Cohn said the institute was sorry to see Xu leave, but believed the departure spoke to the high caliber of researchers working at WiCell.

"It shows the quality of people we have at WiCell … that state institutions are picking our scientists to run their programs," Cohn said. "It's a beta point for how respected WiCell is around the country."

Cohn added the WiCell staff and administration supported Xu's decision, understanding it would be hard for him to pass up an opportunity to "run his own show."

Xu said Thomson, who he called his "mentor," was especially supportive during the process, even though he did what he could to keep Xu from leaving.

"Jamie has been trying to have me take on more responsibilities, more chances to handle his research and run my own research," Xu said. "But he understands this is a very golden opportunity for me at UConn, and totally supported my decision."

Marc Lalande, chair of the UConn Department of Genetics and Developmental Biology, said Xu's experience at WiCell was one of the reasons Xu was such an attractive candidate.

"He has hands down expertise with human embryonic stem cells," Lalande said. "WiCell is a leader in this."

Lalande said Xu, in his new role, will be able to allocate National Institutes of Health grants for research or can use state funds to conduct research on stem cell lines outside of federal restrictions.

It is the latter ability that Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison, said the Wisconsin Legislature should work towards so the state could retain the nation's leading biological researchers.

"Wisconsin has a chance to get in on the ground floor of this opportunity, but we have to invest in this research," Black said. "Wisconsin has to be willing to invest in biological research."