THE organisation driving the growth of the North-East's healthcare economy, Cels, has launched a scheme to help the region's stem cell scientists to develop ideas into commercial reality.
Working with the North-East England Stem Cell Institute (Nesci), Cels is offering 20 Stem Cell Kickstart awards of £1,000 each for ideas that have the potential to provide a major boost to the North-East economy.
The organisation, based at Newcastle's Centre for Life, plans to grow the region's healthcare economy by £1bn by 2015, and is looking to talent in the North-East to help.
Cels chief executive Mike Asher said: "The commercialisation of stem cell research has the potential to contribute significantly to the growth of our regional economy.
"However, one of the challenges is that the financial returns of this work are often long-term, so early-stage research can struggle to attract funding."
Any member of a research team in stem cell research and at a North-East university or research institute is invited to apply for an award at www.cels atlife.com or on 0191-2112626.
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