INTERNATIONAL STEM CELL CORPORATION’S CHAIRMAN DISCUSSES CREATION OF CORNEA IN A PETRI DISH IN DECEMBER 11, 2009 EDITION OF DISCOVERY NEWS

OCEANSIDE, CA – December 15, 2009 –International Stem Cell Corporation (OTCBB:ISCO), www.intlstemcell.com, a company creating human stem cell lines from unfertilized eggs, disclosed today that its previously announced creation of human, cornea-like tissue in a petri dish had become the subject of an article titled “Biotech Could Take Rabbits Off Lab Duty” in the December 11, 2009 edition of Discovery News.

In the article, reporter Alyssa Danigelis writes about how, while growing stem cells in the lab using blastocysts, researchers at International Stem Cell spotted something in the waste products usually discarded from the petri dish that turned out to be a tiny translucent structure of cells that resembled a human cornea.

This little ball of cells, the article explained, might actually spare animals from lab testing and be used for transplants in humans. Many cosmetics, drug, and chemical companies still put their products in live rabbits' eyes for safety testing, a process that is not only awful for the animals, but time-consuming and expensive.

Mr. Kenneth Aldrich, ISCO’s Chairman, was reported as saying that an initial round of testing with the ISCO corneas demonstrated that they have the same permeability as the rabbit eyes. The lab-grown corneas may also have the potential to be transplanted into humans one day. He went on to mention that this could make a big difference in countries where it's difficult to get refrigerated donor corneas to patients in time. Currently the company is repeating a round of validation testing to confirm the permeability results.

The Discovery News article is available at:
http://news.discovery.com/tech/biotech-could-take-rabbits-off-lab-duty.html

ABOUT INTERNATIONAL STEM CELL CORPORATION (ISCO.OB):

International Stem Cell Corporation is a California biotechnology company focused on developing therapeutic and research products. ISCO’s technology, Parthenogenesis, results in the creation of pluripotent human stem cell lines from unfertilized human eggs. ISCO scientists have created the first Parthenogenetic homozygous stem cell line (phSC-Hhom-4) that can be a source of therapeutic cells that will minimize immune rejection after transplantation into hundreds of millions of individuals of differing sexes, ages and racial groups. These advancements offer the potential to create the first true “Stem Cell Bank” and address ethical issues by eliminating the need to use or destroy fertilized embryos. ISCO also produces and markets specialized cells and growth media worldwide for therapeutic research through its subsidiary Lifeline Cell Technology. For more information, visit the ISCO website at: www.internationalstemcell.com.

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:

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Key Words: Stem Cells, Biotechnology, Parthenogenesis

CONTACTS:

International Stem Cell Corporation
Kenneth C. Aldrich, Chairman
760-940-6383
kaldrich@intlstemcell.com

or
Brian Lundstrom, President
760-640-6383
bl@intlstemcell.com

The Investor Relations Group
Investor Relations:
James Carbonara
212-825-3210
jcarbonara@investorrelationsgroup.com

or
Media Relations:
Laura Colontrelle
212-825-3210
lcolontrelle@investorrelationsgroup.com