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Cambridge could lose a world lead in stem cell science and its top talent to America unless major funding is pumped into the cluster as a matter of urgency.

 

Sir Chris Evans, the founding father of Cambridge biotech, says the brain drain has already ed and expects another of the region’s top stem cell companies to move out in the next month or so.

 

Sir Chris has urged Venture Capital firms and the UK Government to rally to the flag to stop the rot.

 

A huge injection of capital and a determined effort to pull the stem cell science community into an identifiable entity are absolute priorities, he says.

 

The torch and the attendant challenges have been passed to serial entrepreneur and VC, Dr Hermann Hauser, who has succeeded Dr Mary Archer as chair of the East of England Stem Cell Network.

 

Dr Hauser believes the situation can be rescued with a determined and united effort.

 

He said: “We need to build on the Network’s successful track record so that the academics, business executives, clinicians, policy influencers and the general public all pull together to secure the region’s future in this challenging and fast-growing sector.

 

“Stem cells have a great potential to permanently repair damaged tissues of all kinds.

 

However it is unclear how long this will take. Progess is rapid at present and Cambridge has one of the strongest stem cell communities in the world.”

 

Sir Chris pledged his full support to Dr Hauser’s rein but cautioned on the scale of the challenge. He said: “I still think Britain has some of the best stem cell science in the world.  Back in 2005 when I ed the UK Stem Cell Foundation, Britain was without any shadow of doubt the world No.1 in stem cell science, technology and applications. 

 

“With the raising of significant private capital for the UKSCF by myself and the Trustees, the set up of Gordon Brown’s Stem Cell Initiative led by Sir John Pattersen and the increasing funding at research level by the Wellcome Trust and MRC, I believed that Britain was now going to pull even further ahead of the rest of the world and leave the US trailing in our wake!

Sir Chris continued: “Instead, the excellent Pattersen Report and recommendations in 2005 were simply ignored. Lots of petty politics and Treasury blockages crept in, the lines between the UKSCF and MRC got red, private philanthropists got disillusioned by the inactivity of government and stem cell scientists got fed up, with some leaving the country.

 

“Every single biotech company or commercial venture using stem cells has been running out of money over the last three years and nobody has put anything back in the tank.

 

“Whilst a number of UKSCF projects were eventually funded and got off the ground and several good academic programmes funded by MRC and Wellcome (almost all embryonic), the enthusiasm and momentum for building Britain’s leadership position in stem cell science has waned considerably.

 

“In 2008, all of Britain’s stem cell activities are suffering even more due to the credit crunch and total lack of funding. Scientists like Professor Colin McClurken are leaving still.  Stem cell companies are shrinking and looking to relocate to other countries to secure funding for their programmes.

 

“In the next month or so I would expect the disappointing announcement that yet another UK stem cell business has left our shores.

 

“Cambridge, as usual, is one of the great flag bearers of British science and, in particular, stem cell science. It is rivalled only by Scotland. The combination of enthusiasts like Hermann Hauser and Mary Archer with the brilliant science in Cambridge, should make for considerable success. 

 

“Significant funds, as always, will be required to achieve anything worthwhile and perhaps Hermann can make these happen.

 

“Having built ReNeuron (the UK’s only seriously advanced stem cell company) and the UK Stem Cell Foundation (with its various project funding), I am still pretty well networked worldwide on stem cell science. I am more than happy to endorse and support Hermann’s initiative where I can.”

 

Dr Archer steered the Network from a government funded initiative in 2004 to a private, not-for-profit company with over 500 members.

 

She said: “Whilst this region is recognised as a global centre of excellence in developmental and stem cell biology, EESCN’s ambition is for the cluster around Cambridge to play a major role in the translation of the fundamental science into routine patient treatments,” adding that a number of significant hurdles must be overcome if the region is to realise this ambition.

 

“In addition to the scientific challenges, there is an urgent need for the industry to devise innovative business and investment models ? the traditional biotech model doesn’t work for stem cell therapies ? as well as developing novel manufacturing processes and equipment, defining clear regulatory pathways to market, and ensuring that the appropriate IP protection is in place to enable the commercialisation of the science.”

 

Feedback from a recent EESCN workshop that explored the future of the stem cell sector in and around Cambridge suggests that much of the expertise that is needed to overcome these challenges already exists within the Cambridge region.

 

The problem, according to Dr Archer, is that the expertise is dispersed throughout the various academic departments, research institutes, hospitals, companies and professional advisers.

 

“Groups of experts tend to work in isolation, ing their attention in their own area of expertise, unaware of the wealth of knowledge available in the area and so missing out on synergistic collaborations.”