The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) has awarded Scripps Health over $12.7 million to conduct studies on the use of stem cells to repair knee injuries. The funding will be used for laboratory-based tissue engineering and cartilage and bone injury repair surgeries in animals led by investigators at the Shiley Center for Orthopaedic Research and Education (SCORE). Researchers aim to demonstrate that implanting the engineered, scaffold-free tissue to repair such injuries in animal models is safe and effective. At the end of the five-year grant period, researchers plan to submit a new drug or biological product application with the Food and Drug Administration, which could lead to clinical trials in humans.