The publicly funded California Institute for Regenerative Medicine was launched with great fanfare in 2004 and is one of the world's biggest stem cell research supporters. But because of continued state deficits, it is preparing for a future that may not include any more taxpayer funding, Nature reports. CIRM is about halfway through the $3 billion public bond voters approved at its launch. And now the institute is drawing up future plans to support its grantees, perhaps with non-profit venture philanthropy, and also to find ways to translate more of its research into the clinic. Celebrities including the late actor Christopher Reeve lobbied hard for CIRM's initial funding and launch. According to the article, CIRM has spent a little over a billion so far on new buildings and labs along with basic research, and current funding will run out by 2021. Story