A Wisconsin stem cell pioneer expects the next president to help reduce some of the problems facing federal research funding.
Stem cell research has faced tight funding restrictions under the Bush administration. Dr. James Thomson expects that to change under President-elect Barack Obama.
Thomson says, in normal economic times, he'd expect stem cell research to see a boost in funding. However, the current economic crisis could make that very unlikely for at least a few years.
Thomson says the biggest benefit will be a psychological one, with more people willing to start research. He says many people have avoided the field because of the funding restrictions that were in place. But the research could benefit from a growing interest that could help to speed up new discoveries.
