Douglas Melton

Douglas Melton is co-director of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute. His research into stem cell therapies is motivated in part by his children's affliction with Type 1 diabetes. He is known for pioneering work in developmental biology of the pancreas.

In 2001 when President George W. Bush cut federal funding of embryonic stem cell research, Melton used private donations to create more than 100 stem cell lines and distribute them without charge to researchers across the country.

In 2007, Melton was listed among Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People in The World. Melton was a founding director of the International Society for Stem Cell Research and currently serves on the Science Advisory Board of the Genetics Policy Institute.