After a contentious search, the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine on Friday named Australian stem cell research Alan Trounson as the new president of the institute.

Trounson, director of the immunology and stem cell laboratories at Monash University, is a long-time expert in IVF and stem cell research and founder of the Australian Stem Cell Center. He has also started a handful of companies to commercialize stem cell research (and has said he will divest from those in which he still holds interests). "It doesn't get any bigger than this," he said of his appointment in an interview with Australia's daily newspaper, The Age. He is expected to take up the post later this year.

The appointment comes as the institute begins to crank into high gear: at the end of this month, California will sell $250 million in bonds, releasing the first chunk of the institute's $3 billion in funding.