South Korea ranks second in the world in terms of the number of commercial clinical trials for stem cell research.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety’s report on the development of stem cell medication shows that as of March, of the 258 ongoing commercial clinical trials around the world aimed at developing stem cell medication, 40 clinical trials or 16 percent are under way in South Korea.

The U.S. took the largest portion with 136. Spain and China came in third with 17.

Clinical trials for stem cell research started in earnest in 2004 and posted a steady increase until 2011 before slightly slowing down over the last two years.