Life Science Sector Research Articles

Collaborating to deliver value in health care: exploring conditions required for successful healthcare and life science sector collaboration

PurposeThe UK Government-funded National Health Service (NHS) is experiencing significant pressures because of the complexity of challenges to, and demands of, health-care provision. This situation has driven government policy level support for transformational change initiatives, such as value-based health care (VBHC), through closer alignment and collaboration across the health-care system-life science sector nexus. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the necessary antecedents to collaboration in VBHC through a critical exploration of the existing literature, with a view to establishing the foundations for further development of policy, practice and theory in this field.Design/methodology/approachA literature review was conducted via searches on Scopus and Google Scholar between 2009 and 2019 for peer-reviewed articles containing keywords and phrases “Value-based healthcare industry” and “healthcare industry collaboration”. Refinement of the results led to the identification of “guiding conditions” (GCs) for collaboration in VBHC.FindingsFive literature-derived GCs were identified as necessary for the successful implementation of initiatives such as VBHC through system-sector collaboration. These are: a multi-disciplinarity; use of appropriate technological infrastructure; capturing meaningful metrics; understanding the total cycle-of-care; and financial flexibility. This paper outlines research opportunities to empirically test the relevance of the five GCs with regard to improving system-sector collaboration on VBHC.Originality/valueThis paper has developed a practical and constructive framework that has the potential to inform both policy and further theoretical development on collaboration in VBHC.

Identifying the role of business accelerators in the developing business ecosystem: the life science sector

PurposeBusiness accelerators have recently received increasing attention as important cogs in business ecosystem development. However, their exact role in the ecosystem is not yet well known, especially outside the IT sector. The purpose of this study is, therefore, twofold: to determine the position of life science accelerators in the business ecosystem and the attributes of support for companies and to identify key features of the life science accelerators that contribute to the change in business ecosystems.Design/methodology/approachThe authors offer an exploratory case study of five life science business accelerators and analyze the main factors affecting the companies and the whole business ecosystem. The authors build upon the scarce literature on business accelerators and consider a new type of accelerator that specializes in life science projects and study its role in the transformation and evolution of the life science industry.FindingsThe authors have defined the role and key parameters of life science accelerators that influence the existing business ecosystems: (1) cooperation with other regions and countries, (2) development of entrepreneurial skills among participants of the business accelerators program and (3) a project on demand-based approach.Originality/valueThe key parameters of the life science accelerators allow to concentrate these efforts on the activities that are most demanded by the market. Business accelerators can increase the created value for other program participants.

The Polish Biotech & Life Science Sector: The Convergence of Culture, Ambition & Need

The Polish Life Science sector has been growing for the last decade and has received billions of euros in EU funding, but has still failed to attract significant private investment. Despite the EU financing, there are still no real market or investment success stories, although companies are emerging with the potential to be globally competitive. This article examines the financing and behaviour of the Polish Life Science sector in the context of the Polish innovative economy and provides a cultural perspective to the challenges facing the sector.

The role proximity plays in university-driven social networks. The case of the US and EU life-science clusters

Over the last decade, the research in the field of technology and innovation has progressed towards the development of the notion of an ‘ecosystem’ that lays within the idea that innovation and technological advances stem from collective research efforts and social interactions. The paper delivers new insights on successful university-based innovation ecosystems, by exploring the role of proximities in university-driven social networks. Two research problems are discussed: 1/ the structure and dynamics of university-driven social networks, and 2/ the role of proximities as pre-conditions for stronger social ties and more frequent interactions. The author applies a qualitative interview and direct observation methods on the example of several selected life-science university-based ecosystems in the EU and the US. The study identifies several fundamental relationships: (1) the presence of high physical, cognitive and organizational proximities within university-based ecosystems contributes to social networking and the interchange of knowledge; (2) cognitive and organizational proximities are the primary motives for social collaborations within university-based ecosystems; (3) physical proximity matters most when strong social networks already exist; (4) physical proximity allows ecosystem players to have more informal interactions; (5) cultural and social proximities increase more effective communication, trust and knowledge sharing; (6) social networking within university-based ecosystems may be partially engineered by the brokerage function of intermediary organizations and managers, aiming to narrow organizational, technological and cognitive proximities between ecosystem players. Bridging organizational, cognitive and social distances must be one of the regional innovation policies priorities. Further research must consider increasing technological convergence, shortening technological cycles and globalization processes within the life-science sector.

Current Perspectives and Challenges in the Pharmaceutical, Life Science and Healthcare Sectors

The pharmaceutical industry is one of the most innovative sectors in the world. In 2014, the global drug sales market exceeded one trillion dollars for the first time. Innovative, patented drugs represent the largest part of pharmaceutical sales revenues. Nowadays partnerships, licensing and M&A are important parts of R&D strategies to use assets in the most efficient way and accelerate translation of biomedical innovations to bring novel products, services and solutions to the market for patients who need them.

Current Perspectives and Challenges in the Pharmaceutical, Life Science and Health Care Sectors

The pharmaceutical industry is one of the most innovative sectors in the world. In 2014, the global drug sales market exceeded one trillion dollars for the first time. Innovative, patented drugs represent the largest part of pharmaceutical sales revenues. Nowadays partnerships, licensing and M&A are important parts of R&D strategies to use assets in the most efficient way and accelerate translation of biomedical innovations to bring novel products, services and solutions to the market for patients who need them.

FEATURES

Transitioning between academia and industry in the life science sector Preparing students for jobs that do not exist now

Thames Estuary: The capital corridor

The Thames Estuary, stretching from capital to coast, has arguably the UK’s greatest economic potential. However, while the success of Canary Wharf and London’s docklands development is clearly evident, government support for regeneration and growth further along the estuary has waxed and waned in recent years. Local partners in Kent and Essex have achieved significant success, but game-changing commitment and investment from central government has remained elusive. From the perspective of democratic leadership, this paper is prompted by Sir John Armitt’s Thames Estuary 2050 Growth Commission (Sir John taking over the chairmanship from Lord Heseltine in 2017) and the opportunity for a renewed focus on the area and direct support from government to unlock its true potential. It examines recent strategic approaches and local successes, the potential that remains for perhaps Europe’s largest brownfield development area, and the challenge of local governance. It recognises the need to attract new private sector investment in supporting a dynamic and varied economy, with public funding still limited. It considers the potential of developing new growth corridors and clusters within the estuary for the creative and life science sectors and the connectivity to support growth. Fundamentally, it addresses the challenge of promoting the estuary’s potential while looking both ways: internally to government for recognition and support, and externally for international investment and growth.

The Influence of General Data Protection Regulation on Patient Engagement

The new European General Data Protection Regulation – also known as GDPR – has raised the awareness among the private business entities regarding the protection of data subjects and the usage of personal data in their trade operations. In the present study, we aim at identifying and assessing the impact the new Regulation mainly on the life science sector, with a particular focus on clinical trials. Besides the subjects of the clinical trials, patients as the data subjects and the protection of their rights, when conducting scientific research in the medical-pharmaceutical field, we seek to define concepts such as sensitive data and data concerning health, data processing in scientific research and roles of all parties involved through the definitions of data subject, controller, processor or recipient given in the GDPR. The scope of the present research is represented by the analysis of the impact of the GDPR provisions on the derogations relating to processing for scientific research purpose on the rights of the clinical trial subjects.

The New, Stringent MDR and IVDR Regulations: Viewing this Change as an Opportunity.

The healthcare and life science sector is growing inexorably, and is now a multi-billion dollar industry. In 2016 the companies in this sector posted sales of USD 140 billion, and their profitability more than doubled by comparison with 2010. The pharmaceutical, diagnostics, medtech and chemical sectors have become Switzerland's most powerful export industry, and significant number of approved medications and diagnostics contain biotech elements.

Managing to make markets: Marketization and the conceptualization work of strategic nets in the life science sector

This paper presents one of the first studies to identify and explain the marketization work of a strategic net. Through a study of the Stevenage Bioscience Catalyst – a strategic net formed to support the marketization of Life Science Discoveries - we generate insights into the everyday work that makes marketization happen. Marketization is understood as the process that enables the conceptualisation, production and exchange of goods. Our findings focus on one specific form of marketization work found to be core to the strategic net: conceptualisation work. Three forms of conceptualisation work are identified: conceptualising actors' roles, conceptualising markets and conceptualising goods. These manifest as routinized, recursive practices. Our analysis reveals how these practices gather together multiple forms of scientific, technical and market knowledge to generate new market devices that transform market rules and conventions, and introduce new methods and instruments of valuation that change the market. In contrast to extant studies that claim a strategic net's activities influence markets; our findings position the conceptualisation work of the strategic net as constitutive of markets and the broader system of provision for ‘healthcare’ and ‘health futures’.

Stage-gate process for life sciences and medical innovation investment

Life science innovation has led to significant improvements in clinical outcomes and has been a source of financial growth for individuals and institutions capable of performing appropriate investments in this sector. Several groups have developed methodologies to assist medical technology innovators in the design and development activities. Unfortunately, these tools have not aided the general investment community to profit from these enterprises. This situation has contributed to a general reduction in risk capital directed towards life sciences compared to other industries. We review the current investment practices in the life science sector and present a comprehensive stage-gate model that aims to captures this investment process. An analysis of best practices and in-depth interviews with 68 life sciences investors and entrepreneurs worldwide are used to support such model. A single case-control study comparing life science investment execution within two similar investment firms was conducted to evaluate feasibility in the implementation of these practices. The stage-gate model includes (I) General vision and investment strategy definition; (II) Venture search, screening and rapid pre-evaluation; (III) Due diligence and negotiation of terms; (IV) Portfolio management, evaluation, and exit. The difference in execution of investment and results from a post-performance Root Cause Analysis were consistent with a reduction in perceived risk from the case company trained with the proposed model compared to the control. This suggests that our developed model and process may be useful in encouraging life sciences investment via evidence-based evaluations.

Mammalian Synthetic Biology: Time for Big MACs.

The enabling technologies of synthetic biology are opening up new opportunities for engineering and enhancement of mammalian cells. This will stimulate diverse applications in many life science sectors such as regenerative medicine, development of biosensing cell lines, therapeutic protein production, and generation of new synthetic genetic regulatory circuits. Harnessing the full potential of these new engineering-based approaches requires the design and assembly of large DNA constructs-potentially up to chromosome scale-and the effective delivery of these large DNA payloads to the host cell. Random integration of large transgenes, encoding therapeutic proteins or genetic circuits into host chromosomes, has several drawbacks such as risks of insertional mutagenesis, lack of control over transgene copy-number and position-specific effects; these can compromise the intended functioning of genetic circuits. The development of a system orthogonal to the endogenous genome is therefore beneficial. Mammalian artificial chromosomes (MACs) are functional, add-on chromosomal elements, which behave as normal chromosomes-being replicating and portioned to daughter cells at each cell division. They are deployed as useful gene expression vectors as they remain independent from the host genome. MACs are maintained as a single-copy and can accommodate multiple gene expression cassettes of, in theory, unlimited DNA size (MACs up to 10 megabases have been constructed). MACs therefore enabled control over ectopic gene expression and represent an excellent platform to rapidly prototype and characterize novel synthetic gene circuits without recourse to engineering the host genome. This review describes the obstacles synthetic biologists face when working with mammalian systems and how the development of improved MACs can overcome these-particularly given the spectacular advances in DNA synthesis and assembly that are fuelling this research area.

Funding allocation, inequality, and scientific research output: an empirical study based on the life science sector of Natural Science Foundation of China

Scientific research activity produces the "Matthew Effect" on resource allocation. Based on a data set in the life sciences field from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) during the 11th Five-Year-Plan (2006---2010), this paper makes an empirical study on how the Matthew Effect of funding allocation at the institutional level and city level impact scientific research activity output. With Gini coefficient evaluation, descriptive statistic analysis, and the Poisson regression model, we found that there has been a rapid increase in the concentration degree of funding allocation among institutions and cities. Within a period of 5 years, the Gini coefficients of total funding of institutions and cities as the units of measurement have increased from 0.61 and 0.74 to 0.67 and 0.79 respectively. However, this concentration in funding allocation did not result in significant additional benefits. Institutions awarded with more funding did not produce the expected positive spillover effect on their scientific research activity output. Instead, an "inverted U-shape" pattern of decreasing returns to scale was discovered, under which there was a negative effect on internal scientific research activity in the majority of institutions with concentrated funding allocation. Meanwhile, the result shows that Young Scholars projects under the NFSC produced high-level output. We conclude the study by discussing the possible reasons of the inverted U-shape pattern and its policy implications.

Going Alone: The “Entrepreneurial-Growth Model” in the Life Science Industry in Italy

This article investigates different models of financing firms and firm expansion in the Italian life science sector. Building on a broad secondary data base (“Zephyr”), the authors present a descriptive analysis of 438 financial transactions in which Italian life science firms were involved between 1997 and 2006. The results of this analysis demonstrate that forms of risk capital, such as private equity and venture capital play only a marginal role in financing Italian life science firms. In contrast, an “entrepreneurial growth model” based on traditional models of financing firm expansion—such as, e.g. mergers and acquisitions—dominates in quantitative terms. In an additional in-depth analysis of the Zephyr-database, the authors further identify six “emerging business strategies” of Italian life science firms, namely: horizontal expansion, cross-border expansion, forward vertical integration, specialization, technological upgrading and diversification. These strategies are illustrated in more detail using seven representative cases of individual firms.

Food-Pharma Convergence in Medical Nutrition– Best of Both Worlds?

At present, industries within the health and life science sector are moving towards one another resulting in new industries such as the medical nutrition industry. Medical nutrition products are specific nutritional compositions for intervention in disease progression and symptom alleviation. Industry convergence, described as the blurring of boundaries between industries, plays a crucial role in the shaping of new markets and industries. Assuming that the medical nutrition industry has emerged from the convergence between the food and pharma industries, it is crucial to research how and which distinct industry domains have contributed to establish this relatively new industry. The first two stages of industry convergence (knowledge diffusion and consolidation) are measured by means of patent analysis. First, the extent of knowledge diffusion within the medical nutrition industry is graphed in a patent citation interrelations network. Subsequently the consolidation based on technological convergence is determined by means of patent co-classification. Furthermore, the medical nutrition core domain and technology interrelations are measured by means of a cross impact analysis. This study proves that the medical nutrition industry is a result of food and pharma convergence. It is therefore crucial for medical nutrition companies to effectively monitor technological developments within as well as across industry boundaries. This study further reveals that although the medical nutrition industry’s core technology domain is food, technological development is mainly driven by pharmaceutical/pharmacological technologies Additionally, the results indicate that the industry has surpassed the knowledge diffusion stage of convergence, and is currently in the consolidation phase of industry convergence. Nevertheless, while the medical nutrition can be classified as an industry in an advanced phase of convergence, one cannot predict that the pharma and food industry segments will completely converge or whether the medical industry will become an individual successful industry.

Crystallization: Key thermodynamic, kinetic and hydrodynamic aspects

Crystallization is extensively used in different industrial applications, including the production of a wide range of materials such as fertilizers, detergents, food and pharmaceutical products, as well as in the mineral processing industries and treatment of waste effluents. In spite of the wide-spread use of crystallization, a clear understanding of the thermodynamic, kinetic and hydrodynamic aspects of the design methodologies are not yet well established. More often than not crystallization is still considered an art especially in fine-chemicals, pharmaceuticals and life-sciences sector. It is essential to understand and relate key thermodynamic, kinetic and hydrodynamic aspects to crystallizer performance, not just in terms of yield but also in terms of product quality (characterized by particle size distribution, morphology, polymorphism and the amount of strain as well as the uptake of solvent or impurities in the crystal lattice). This paper attempts to do that by critically reviewing published experimental and modelling studies on establishing and enhancing state-of-the-art thermodynamic, kinetic and hydrodynamic aspects of crystallization. Efforts are made to discuss and raise points for emerging modelling tools needed for a flexible design and operation of crystallizers and crystallization processes that are needed to meet the ever increasing demand on precise product specifications. Focus is on bringing out the trends which can be used as perspectives for future studies in this field.

Exploring the Economic Impact of Private Equity in Emerging Industries – An Analysis of the Dutch Life Sciences Sector

The aim of this paper is to discuss the competitive effects of the private equity industry in emerging industries, with a focus on the Dutch Life Sciences cluster located in West Holland, a Dutch region. As this analysis shows, the circumstances which favored the early success of this industry include factors such as education, infrastructure, governmental support, the existence of key industrial players, as well as the investment strategies of private actors. What this paper underline is the significant influence of private equity investments for the financial support of innovative products, on one side, and the growing opportunities through, on the other side. The paper is structured in two parts. The first reviews the literature regarding the evolution of emerging industries and the impact of geographic locations on their attractiveness to private investors. The second part highlights the way in which an emerging industry (i.e. life sciences industry in West Holland region) has upgraded its competitive advantage under the influence of private capital.

Preparation of novel whey protein-based aerogels as drug carriers for life science applications

High-performance carriers of active compounds processed in a sustainable manner are being prospected in the health care industry and the life science sector in general. The preparation of natural product-based nanoporous materials is regarded as an upgraded process that fulfills the above requirements. The drying of covalently crosslinked protein-based hydrogels using supercritical carbon dioxide is a promising technology for generating highly porous matrices in the dry form (aerogels) susceptible to loading with high active compound contents. In this work, whey protein aerogels and cryogels were prepared by supercritical drying (SCD) and freeze drying (FD) techniques, respectively, from thermally induced protein hydrogels processed at various pH values (1.5, 3.0, 4.5, 7.0, 8.0 and 10.0). A comparative study of the properties of the resulting whey protein aerogels and cryogels was carried out. Mechanical stability as well as microstructural and textural properties of the resulting dried gels was shown to be influenced by the pH value of the hydrogel and the drying technique used. Aerogels were mesoporous (pore diameter≤27.4nm) whereas cryogels showed macroporosity (pore diameter≤200μm). Finally, the use of whey protein aerogels as carriers for active compounds was assessed using ketoprofen as the model drug. Whey protein aerogels showed a high drug loading capacity of up to 9.5% (w/w) (cryogels: 0.4–0.8%, w/w), pH-dependent swelling behaviour in aqueous media and a sustained diffusive drug release.

REVIEW

Agricultural Biotechnology and Food Security. Innovating for the Future – A Focus on the Dutch Life Sciences and Health Sector. LatAM Biotechnology – An Outsider Looking In & an Insider Looking Out Perspective.