Academic Teams and Commercialization in the Life Sciences

We review the literature on entrepreneurial team formation with a focus on data to study academic teams and summarize our empirical work on the life sciences industry. We consider how academics form teams to start new companies and the implications of various configurations on firm behavior with regards to patenting, survival and firm growth. We present several empirical challenges facing research on academic teams and conclude with suggestions for future research.

Recognizing and Celebrating Innovation and Innovators in Biopharma

This introductory article summarizes our basis for recognition of innovative companies (past, present and emerging) in our industry, and summarizes the criterion that we are using to evaluate those organizations selected for contributing to innovation in the life sciences industry. We also develop and list both industry leaders, both pioneers and current, who we selected as members of the JCB Innovators Hall of Fame - 2021.

The effect of a pandemic on the Life Sciences industry

Pharmaceutical, healthcare and biotech companies have been at the forefront of the COVID-19 response, from drug trials and vaccine development to the production of personal protective equipment (PPE) and ventilators. The industry has a unique ability and responsibility to help the world respond to the global pandemic, both by working collaboratively to deliver solutions to the virus and also by maintaining the supply of medically important products to those who need them. As in all industries, business in the sector has been disrupted by the virus. This is largely driven by a reduction in healthcare provider and patient interactions as hospitals redirect resources toward COVID-19, and patients avoid healthcare facility visits and postpone preventative care. The impact on specific companies will depend on the diversity of their portfolio and their largest revenue areas. For example, roughly two thirds of Merck’s global Human Health revenue is comprised of physician-administered products and decreased volumes during the pandemic are expected to have a negative impact on revenues. Whilst much of the pandemic impact will be short term, peaking over the next quarter in conjunction with the peak of the virus in the US and Europe and settling towards the end of the year, it is likely we will see some long term structural change in the industry as global attitudes towards health shift in the wake of the pandemic.

US life sciences sector will take on more tech

Subject The US life sciences sector. Significance The US pharmaceutical company Gilead purchased rights and shares in the Belgian-Dutch firm Galapagos with a 5.1-billion-dollar agreement in mid-July. The move illustrates a trend in the life sciences industry (pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and other sectors based on biological knowledge): the effective outsourcing of research functions through mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Gilead pursued Galapagos, according to reports, for access to its drugs in development and those in its pipeline. However, there are questions about whether this strategy is sufficient for the sector long-term. Impacts Laws or rulings on data or genetic privacy will affect medical-data-reliant life sciences firms, posing shocks. This is less likely in the United States, where the industry has considerable lobbying power. A major EU data decision could bifurcate the life sciences industry.