Dr. Michael D. West is CEO of Biotime, of Alameda, California, a company engaged in stem cell research and development, development of low temperature medicine (ice cold suspended animation

Suspended animation

Suspended animation is the slowing of life processes by external means without termination. Breathing, heartbeat, and other involuntary functions may still occur, but they can only be detected by artificial means. Extreme cold can be used to precipitate the slowing of an individual's functions; use...

 technologies), and development of artificial blood plasma solutions for the treatment for blood loss due to trauma and elective surgery. He is also Adjunct Professor of Bioengineering at the University of California, Berkeley

University of California, Berkeley

The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...

. He was Chairman of the Board, Chief Scientific Officer, and former CEO of Advanced Cell Technology

Advanced Cell Technology

Advanced Cell Technology, Incorporated , is a biotechnology company located in Marlborough, Massachusetts, USA. The company specializes in the development and commercialization of cell therapies for the treatment of a variety of diseases...

 Corporation, which specializes in stem cell

Stem cell

This article is about the cell type. For the medical therapy, see Stem Cell TreatmentsStem cells are biological cells found in all multicellular organisms, that can divide and differentiate into diverse specialized cell types and can self-renew to produce more stem cells...

 research.

Dr. West also founded Geron Corporation

Geron Corp.

Geron Corporation is a biotechnology company located in Menlo Park, California that specializes in developing and commercialization of products in three specific areas: 1) therapeutic products for cancer that inhibit telomerase; 2) pharmaceuticals that activate telomerase in tissues impacted by...

, a biotechnology company based in Menlo Park, California

Menlo Park, California

Menlo Park, California is a city at the eastern edge of San Mateo County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, in the United States. It is bordered by San Francisco Bay on the north and east; East Palo Alto, Palo Alto, and Stanford to the south; Atherton, North Fair Oaks, and Redwood City...

, and served as its Director and Senior Executive Officer from 1990 to 1998. The company was incorporated in 1990 and began doing business in 1992. Geron Corporation focuses on creating drugs based on telomere

Telomere

A telomere is a region of repetitive DNA sequences at the end of a chromosome, which protects the end of the chromosome from deterioration or from fusion with neighboring chromosomes. Its name is derived from the Greek nouns telos "end" and merοs "part"...

 and stem cell

Stem cell

This article is about the cell type. For the medical therapy, see Stem Cell TreatmentsStem cells are biological cells found in all multicellular organisms, that can divide and differentiate into diverse specialized cell types and can self-renew to produce more stem cells...

 research.

West has been featured in numerous news media reports concerning somatic cell nuclear transfer

Somatic cell nuclear transfer

In genetics and developmental biology, somatic-cell nuclear transfer is a laboratory technique for creating a clonal embryo, using an ovum with a donor nucleus . It can be used in embryonic stem cell research, or, potentially, in regenerative medicine where it is sometimes referred to as...

 technology, and has testified before the U.S. Congress on this subject. His 2003 book The Immortal Cell tells the story of his personal struggles in researching regenerative medicine and the problem of human aging

Senescence

Senescence or biological aging is the change in the biology of an organism as it ages after its maturity. Such changes range from those affecting its cells and their function to those affecting the whole organism...

.

Books

• Michael D. West, The Immortal Cell, Doubleday (2003) ISBN 978-0385509282
• Gregory M. Fahy, Michael D. West, L. Stephen Coles, Steven B. Harris, The Future of Aging: Pathways to Human Life Extension, Springer (2010) ISBN 978-9048139989

External links

• Dr. West's webpage
• BioTime, Inc.
• Dr. West's Biography
• Video: The Stem Cell Controversy January 18, 2006, Woodrow Wilson Center event featuring Robin Cook (novelist)
  Robin Cook (novelist)
  Dr. Robin Cook is an American physician and novelist who writes about medicine and topics affecting public health....
  
  , William B. Hurlbut
  William B. Hurlbut
  William B. Hurlbut is a physician and Consulting Professor in the Neuroscience Institute at Stanford, Stanford University Medical Center. Born in St. Helena, California, he grew up in Bronxville, New York...
  
  , and Michael D. West
• The Prospects of Human Life Extension recorded November 2004 at the Long Now Foundation
• Therapeutic Cloning Under Fire: An Interview with Michael D. West, PhD, cover story, Life Extension Magazine, March 2002
• Interview of Michael West on new breakthroughs in anti-aging cloning research, by Life Extension Magazine, March 18, 2000