By David Jensen
A neuroscientist from Southern California today was named as the new interim president of California's $3 billion stem cell agency -- the largest single source of human embryonic stem cell research funding in the world.
The board of directors for the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) approved Richard A. Murphy, the former president of the Salk Institute of La Jolla, California, on a split voice vote with only one no. The six-month appointment, with a $300,000 salary, begins on Thursday. Board members hope the move will ease concerns of drift at the fledgling agency, which has been searching for a president for eight months since Zach Hall gave notice he would resign the post.
Robert Klein, chairman of CIRM, said during the board meeting that Murphy would help build a strong foundation for the new, permanent president. Philip Pizzo, dean of the Stanford University medical school, said Murphy had been an "eminent member" of the agency's board until he resigned in July, adding that he would be have an immediate positive impact.
Murphy left the Oversight Committee, as the CIRM board is known, after he also retired in July as president of Salk. Murphy was not present at today's meeting and was not immediately available for comment.
John M. Simpson, stem cell project director for the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumers Rightsof Santa Monica, California, told the board that Murphy would be a "good leader."
California voters created CIRM in 2004 when they approved a constitutional change and bond measure to finance human embryonic stem cell research. The agency was initially troubled by lawsuits that challenged its legitimacy. But since turning back its foes, CIRM is now handing out grants at a rate of $29,000 an hour. Next year the rate is expected to go higher.
Murphy was appointed to the CIRM board of directors in 2004 by then Lt.
Gov. Carlos Bustamante. Murphy joined Salk in 2000. The nonprofit research organization has a $150 million endowment with $70 million in annual federal grants. Prior to joining Salk he directed the Montreal
Neurological Institute, a teaching and research institute of McGill
University. He also taught at Harvard and the University of Alberta.
Salk is part of the San Diego stem cell consortium, a research powerhouse that includes the Scripps Research Institute, the Burnham
Institute and the University of California at San Diego. Burnham and UC
San Diego also have seats on the CIRM board. Klein said Murphy agreed to recuse himself from "any decisions" involving San Diego institutions.
(See earlier Wired News story for a look at some of the difficulties in filling the
$400,000-a-year position.)
