LOS ANGELES, June 5 (Xinhua) -- A total number of 17 academic and non-profit institutions in California will boost their stem cell research with new funds totaling 50 million U.S. dollars.

    The funds were awarded on Tuesday from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said.

    Researchers studying human embryonic stem cells will use the grants to fund the renovation of laboratory space, equipment for new research facilities and operating expenses for three years.

    "Once again, our state is leading the nation in stem cell research," Schwarzenegger said. "With the grants announced today, California has issued more than 200 million dollars in grants to pursue potential therapies and cures for debilitating diseases. In addition, this funding will help build new lab space for embryonic stem cell research and will ensure that scientists do not lose federal funding while working on this potentially life-saving science."

    The CIRM agreed to provide the University of California in Los Angeles with a 2.8-million-dollar grant, the University of California in Irvine with 2.67 million and a total of 6.4 million to the University of Southern California (USC) and its affiliated Children's Hospital in Los Angeles.

    The Children's Hospital in Los Angeles plans to use 2.8 million dollars to build a 3,000-square-foot laboratory, which will include four tissue culture rooms. The USC will spend 3.6 million dollars to construct seven tissue culture workstations with bio-safety cabinets, incubators and microscopes.

    "The grants complement our hard work in developing strong programs and recruiting an outstanding team of scientists," said Dr. Brian Henderson, dean of the Keck School of Medicine of the USC. "The funding will help develop more vitally important facilities that are needed for stem cell investigation and the eventual translation of new discoveries to patient care."

    Voters approved Proposition 71 in 2004, which provides 3 billion dollars in funding for stem cell research at California universities and research institutions. To date, the Independent Citizens Oversight Committee, which governs the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, has allocated more than 200 million dollars.

    "It's critically important that California provide a 'safe harbor' where scientists can work on new stem cell lines without endangering their institutions' federal funding," said Robert N. Klein, chairman of the Independent Citizens Oversight Committee.

    He said that "it's equally important that we help finance new facilities to house the growth of this emerging life sciences field. These grants establish a great collaborative model that leverages the intellectual capital of California's leading scientific institutions for the benefit of all Californians."