Conceptual and practical considerations for material and data sharing in stem cell research

Abstract Rapid development in the stem cell field, particularly in the field of pluripotent stem cells, resulted in the establishment of many cell lines, including those of ES cells and iPS cells. Some cell lines were made with the help of public funding while others with private money. The way stem cells are used also varies depending on the purpose of the types of research or medical applications. Regardless of the source of funding or the way cells are used, one important question is how to decide policies for sharing materials and data. On one hand, to accelerate innovation and commercialization, one may need to admit that obtaining IPs and not sharing research materials and data need to be prioritized for researchers and companies. On the other hand, to facilitate overall research activities and speed up medical innovation, one can say that sharing materials and data should be encouraged by researchers and even by the business sector. Regarding the latter view, we can learn some lessons from genome r...