NCBiotech Release: NC: A Life Science Leader Poised For More Growth In 6 'SuperScieNCe' Sectors

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C., June 15, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The North Carolina Biotechnology Center says the state's life science sector grew four times faster than that of the rest of the nation over the last decade.

Even so, a study predicts even better growth as the state builds on its "SuperSciNCe" in six life science technology sectors. The Battelle Technology Partnership Practice based its findings on analysis of innovation, research and industry activity among the state's universities and companies. The six:

1. Crop Genetic Engineering: the manipulation of crop genomes using various methods to isolate or implant specific genes responsible for increased pest, disease and climate resistance; improved yield; or other characteristics of end product quality.
2. Outsourced Drug Development: the pre-formulation and formulation development of pharmaceutical products (with an emphasis on biologics) that are outsourced to Contract Research and Contract Manufacturing Organizations from primary holders of pharmacological compounds or research.
3. Advanced Wound Healing, Surgical Devices, and Regenerative Medicine:  the use of non-biological or biologically based compounds to speed healing of wounds incurring from surgery or trauma; and the use of compounds or microorganisms with regenerative properties to repair internal trauma or wounds.
4. Personalized Medicine and Diagnostics: the use of genomics, biomarkers, sequencing and other cell and tissue diagnostic methods to deliver custom molecular therapeutics tailored to individual patient profiles.
5. Contract Manufacturing: the outsourced manufacturing of pharmaceuticals, biologics, vaccines, and other life science-related commercial products using state of the art machinery and processes designed to reduce risk of contamination and improve production efficiency.
6. Health Informatics: the use of databases ("big data") and clinical decision support tools associated with patients and clinician activity through electronic medical records to improve health care efficiency, delivery and outcomes; also includes some use of bioinformatics to tailor treatment strategies to individual patients.

Battelle quantified the impact of the life sciences in North Carolina: $73 billion a year in economic activity and 228,259 direct and indirect jobs. And while U.S. employment in life sciences rose by 7.4 percent from 2001 to 2012, North Carolina's grew 31 percent.

The state's SuperScieNCe assets are being unfurled to the world at the BIO 2015 convention June 15 through 18 in Philadelphia. Visit the North Carolina Pavilion, organized by NCBiotech, www.ncbiotech.org/bio2015.

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SOURCE NCBiotech