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Biotechnology as a motor for innovation in human therapies, under debate at the Barcelona Science Park

By 15 de December de 2010November 18th, 2020No Comments
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 15.12.2010

Biotechnology as a motor for innovation in human therapies, under debate at the Barcelona Science Park

Titled "Innovation in Human Therapies by means of Biotechnology", the Biotechnology Forum, jointly organized by the Barcelona Science Park (PCB) and the biotech Amgen, has been held at the Antoni Caparros Auditorium of the PCB. The opening speech was conducted by Maria Terrades, managing director of the Barcelona Science Park; Jordi Martí, general director of Amgen in Spain and Portugal, and Raimon Belenes, CEO of the Provincial Clinical Hospital of Barcelona.


During her speech, María Terrades explained that the Barcelona Science Park “was the first science park created in Spain and, that, just short of its 10th anniversary, it already encompasses three public institutes, over 75 companies, more than 70 research groups, a wide array of technological support services and an incubator of biotech companies”. She also explained that the most important differential characteristics of the PCB model were “the convergence of companies and public research groups in the same space, facilitating access to a wide scientific-technological offer to support research”. She also indicated that, unlike other science parks, “the objective of the PCB is not to only to boost research excellence, but also to promote the transfer of knowledge to society by creating patents and new companies that contribute to the promotion of economic growth and social wellbeing”.

Jordi Martí underscored the role of biotechnology as a motor of innovation in the field of human therapies and revealed that Amgen, as a pioneer in this field, “has maintained since its earliest beginnings and up until now an innovative impulse, when 50% of new therapies stem from biotechnological research”.

Raimon Belenes explained that “these new technologies represent a disruptive change in the health sector, and that, at this time, the Clinical Hospital is promoting treatments with cell therapies, digestive, eye and neurological diseases, and does so by means of the Transplant Services Foundation, its tissue bank”.

The forum –facilitated by José Luís Motellón, director of Research and Development at Amgen- was structured in two parts: first, different presentations were conducted, after which a debate took place on the value of biotechnological products.