Sunday RTD - Bioscience: Discovery is in Virginia's DNA

The Sunday Commentary Section of the Richmond Times-Dispatch features VABIO's opinion piece on the growth of the bioscience sector in Virginia.

Founded in 1607 by a venture-backed company in London, Virginia has long been the destination of choice for entrepreneurs and start-up companies. That same tradition of discovery continues today with nearly 300 biotechnology and medical device firms that are expanding the frontiers of modern medicine.

These dedicated scientists, clustered around research universities such as Virginia Commonwealth University, are pioneering new therapeutic medicines, more effective diagnostics and life-saving medical devices.

According to a new study by Miami-based Archstone Consulting, there were more than 1,500 active clinical trails conducted last year by Virginia researchers on new medicines, including those targeting cancer,diabetes, HIV/AIDS, mental health disorders and respiratory diseases.

In addition to the National Science Foundation and biopharma companies with facilities in Virginia (such asPfizer, Merck, Novozymes, Abbott Laboratories, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Teva Pharmaceuticals), the commonwealth is also home to the Janelia Farm Research Campus of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute(HHMI). This $500 million, world-class biomedical research complex in Loudoun County houses several hundred of the world's top scientists who use emerging and innovative technologies to pursue biology's most challenging problems.

Clearly, biotechnology has asserted itself as a vital contributor to Virginia's economic growth.

Click here for the rest of the article: http://bit.ly/jpBOEi