Several regions in the U.S., Washington among them, will be jockeying for biotechnology dominance in the coming years as the industry finally matures, said bioscience experts Monday.
“This is a critical time for the industry,” said Matthew Gardner, president of BayBio, the association that represents the bioscience industry in Northern California. “The industry is just now maturing … [and we’re in the middle of a] productivity explosion.”
Recommended Stories
Gardner and other representatives from BayBio were in Washington Monday to tout the region’s accomplishments over the past 35 years with the release of a comprehensive report on its biotech industry. Among the findings, the Bay Area is home to 900 biotech companies that have taken nearly 400 products to market — more than anywhere else in the U.S.
But while the rest of the country stands in the shadow of Northern California — long considered the undisputed leader in the industry – competition has heated up throughout the U.S. and Washington’s biotech industry is now considered “tremendously mature,” Gardner said.
The Washington area has had several recent accomplishments that pushed it to the next level. Most recently, the Maryland General Assembly allocated $15 million for stem cell research; Janelia Farm — a biotech campus in Loudoun County attracting scientists from all over the world — opened its doors; and an infusion of venture capital funding boosted several local biotech startups.
“Connecting the research with the commercialization is really key here,” said Heike Mayer, an assistant professor in urban affairs and planning at Virginia Tech, who recently co-authored an extensive report on the state of the U.S. biotech industry.
It’s not so much about catching up, said Mayer, than what we can do different from San Francisco “so that we can maintain some economic activity here that makes us special.”
But getting from research to commercialization is where D.C. has faltered. While the region is home to more scientists than anywhere else in the country and has numerous federal research labs, product development has been slow. For example, between 1990 and 1999, the region secured more than 2,000 patents, which typically signals a firm is on the path to commercialization. By comparison, San Francisco had nearly 4,000 patents in the same time frame.
Moreprivate and public funding may be needed to really move the region forward, said Gardner, who also used to head the Maryland Bioscience Alliance in Rockville. For example, North Carolina — a direct competitor — has invested more than $187 million in state funds to advance bioscience in the past 20 years.
“You’re never going to see the breadth and depth (that’s in Northern California),” Gardner said. “You have to plan for that kind of growth in decades.”
