In concert with professor Elena Cattaneo, Elisabetta Cerbai and Silvia Garagna, Luca Coscioni Association launched an appeal to raise funds aimed at covering part of the legal expenses of the three Italian scientists appealing against the Italian government’s decision to arbitrarily exclude human embryonic stem cells from an 8-million euro fund for stem-cell biology (read the chronology of the action). Since the beginning of the appeal (July 7) 7.974,79 euro (around 10.337 USD) have already been raised. The first tranche of legal expenses has been promptly refunded (see attachments).

The following researchers, academicians and private citizens have promptly donated to this campaign: 1. Luisa Acerbi (Italy) 2. Giuseppe Ambrosio (Director, Dept. Cardiology, “Silvestrini�? Hospital, Perugia, Italy) 3. Inga Andersson (Italy) 4. Laura Arconti (Italy) 5. Angelo Baracca (Professor of Physics, University of Florence) 6. Tullio Barni (University of Catanzaro, Italy) 7. Paolo Bazzicalupo (Professor Institute of Genetics and Biophysics) 8. Paolo Beck-Peccoz (University of Milan) 9. Amedeo Bellini (Italy) 10. Umberto Bertazzoni (Italy) 11. Maria Luisa Bianco (Director, Department of Social Research, University of Piedmont) 12. Elena Brambilla (Ordinary Professor of Modern HiNews, University of Milan) 13. Giovanni Ciccotti (Ordinary Professor of Structure of Matter, University “La Sapienza”, Rome) 14. Alberto Clivio (University of Milan, Italy) 15. Carlo Consiglio (University “La Sapienza�? Rome) 16. Antonio Coppotelli (Psychiatrist) 17. Gilberto Corbellini (Ordinary Professor of HiNews of Medicine, University “La Sapienza” Rome and Co-President Luca Coscioni Association) 18. Luisa Corradi (Retired) 19. Margherita D’Aprile (Associate Professor of Geometry, University of Calabria) 20. Roberto Defez (Professor Institute of Genetics and Biophysics, Naples) 21. Vittorio De Franciscis (Research Director CNR, Istituto per l’Endocrinologia e Oncologia Sperimentale “G. Salvatore”, Neaples, Italy) 22. Giuseppe De Michele (University of Neaples) 23. Claudia Diamantini (Senigallia, Italy) 24. Umberto Di Porzio (Italy) 25. Elia Di Schiavi (Researcher Institute of Genetics and Biophysics “A. Buzzati-Traverso�?) 26. Gabriella Dodero (University of Genua, Italy) 27. Mirella Dottori (University of Melbourne, Australia) 28. Melania Dovizio (Italy) 29. Marco Favara (Director, Assisted Fertilisation Centre, Hospital of Cittadella) 30. Maria Cristina Feltri (Italy) 31. Marco Ferraguti (Professor of Biological Evolution, University of Milan) 32. Guido Filacchioni (Italy) 33. Pierangelo Geppetti (University of Florence, Italy) 34. Franco Graziani (CNR, Italy) 35. Fulvio Gualtieri (University of Florence) 36. Giuseppe Impallomeni (Ph.D. Institute of Polymers Chemistry and Technology, Catania) 37. Ivan Innocenti (Businessman) 38. Giancarlo Lancini (Associate Professor, University of Siena) 39. Lupo Macolino (Psychiatrist) 40. Giuseppe Macino (Professor of Applied Biology, University “La Sapienza�?, Rome) 41. Elena Maestri (Department Environmental Science, University of Parma) 42. Stefano Marchiafava (Ordinary Professor of Geometry, “La Sapienza” University, Rome) 43. Giancarlo Mariotti (University of Milan, Italy) 44. Nicola Migone (Italy) 45. Giuseppe Molteni (researcher) 46. Giancarlo Nobile (Gobetti Committee) 47. Gabriella Palmieri (University “La Sapienza�?, Rome) 48. Paola Patrignani (Ordinary Professor of Pharmacology, University of Chieti-Pescara) 49. Luca Peliti (Naples, Italy) 50. Paolo Pellizzari (Associate Professor of Applied Mathematics, “Cà Foscari” University, Venice) 51. Fabio Privileggi (Researcher of Mathematics for the Economics, University of Piedmont) 52. Luciano Provini (Milan, Italy) 53. Leonard Robbins (Ordinary Professor of Genetics, University of Siena) 54. Fabio Rossi (Biomedical Research Centre, Canada) 55. Ferdinando Rossi (Torino, Italy) 56. Laura Savoy (Italy) 57. Paolo Spinicci (Associate Professor of Theoretical Philosophy, University of Milan) 58. Piergiorgio Strata (Ordinary Professor of Physiology, Co-President of the Luca Coscioni Association) 59. Gianluca Vago (University of Milan, Italy) 60. Paolo Villani (Researcher) 61. Carla Visconti (Italy) 62. Mauro Visentin (Italy) along with six donors who asked to remain anonymous. To the transnational appeal have promptly replied and donated: 1. Neil Aronin (University of Massachusetts Medical School, USA) 2. Katharine Barald (University of Michigan Medical School, United States) 3. Gillian Bates (King’s College, London) 4. Ilya Bezprozvanny (Professor UT Southwestern Medical Center, United States) 5. Anders Bjorklund (Professor Wallenberg Neuroscience Center, Lund University, Sweden) 6. Daniela Brunner (Vice-President of Behavioral Research and Development, Psycho-Genics Inc. & Research Scientist, Dept. of Psychiatry, Columbia University, United States) 7. Jang-Ho Cha 8. Yijuang Chern (陳儀莊, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taiwan) 9. Juan Carlos De Martin 10. Marion DiFiglia (Harvard, USA) 11. Stephen Dunnett (Professor, Cardiff University, United Kingdom) 12. Barbara Forrest (Professor, Southeastern Louisiana University, USA) 13. René Frydman (Professor, University of Paris XI, France) 14. Lawrence Goldstein (Professor, San Diego University, United States) 15. Miriam Hickey (PhD, Department of Neurology, Los Angeles, United States) 16. Marisa Jaconi (Researcher, Department of Patology and Immunology, Geneva University, Switzerland) 17. Paul Janiaud (Research Director, Inserm, France) 18. Alex Kazantsev (Associate Professor in Neurology, Harvard Medical School, United States) 19. Marcel Leist (Universitaet Konstanz) 20. Jamie Levey (European Huntington’s Disease Network, France) 21. Susan Lindquist (MIT, United States) 22. Stephen Minger (Director, King’s Stem Cell Biology Laboratory, United Kingdom) 23. James Olson (Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, United States) 24. Marc Peschanski (Scientific Director I-Stem, France) 25. Jack Price (Director Centre for the Cellular Basis of Behaviour, United Kingdom) 26. Michel Puceat (INSERM, France) 27. Don Reed (Fremont, California) 28. Anne Rosser (Clinical Professor of Neurology, Cardiff University, United Kingdom) 29. Primoz Rozman (Medical Director Blood Transfusion, Centre of Slovenia, Slovenia) 30. David Scadden (Professor of Medicine and Co-Chair, Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University, United States) 31. Austin Smith (direttore di Wellcome Trust, Regno Unito) 32. Aslihan Tolun (member of the Turkish Academy of Sciences) 33. Marco Traub (Transeuropean Stem Cell Therapy Consortium, Switzerland) 34. James Tretheway (Stati Uniti) 35. Nancy Wexler (Higgins Professor of Neuropsychology Columbia University and President, Hereditary Disease Foundation New York, United States) 36. Justo G. de Yebenes (University Complutense, Spain) The President of the Health Commission of the German Parliament, Dr. Martina Bunge, has thanked us for our appeal that she has forwarded to her colleagues.