Economic issues for the UK biotechnology sector

This paper examines the economic prospects for the biotechnology industry, focusing on the UK position. I discuss some economic issues relating to the structure of the biotechnology industry and examine whether these factors can account for the relative success of the biotechnology sector in the UK compared to other European countries. I emphasize the importance of the science base, pharmaceutical companies and capital markets in giving the UK an advantage. Looking ahead I argue that prospects are good for the global growth of the industry due to supply and demand side factors. The UK is in a leading position in Europe but faces significant dangers, especially from the public towards biotechnology.     

What would constitute success for UK biotechnology in 2005?

This paper presents the rationale and results of a scenario exercise concerning possible future developments in UK biotechnology. The final output of this exercise is a 'consensus' vision of what success might look like for the UK in biotechnology in 2005. The 'success scenario' was developed during a two-day workshop through structured discussions in a group of people active in biotechnology in industry, research agencies, consultancies or academe.     

Biotechnology,people and markets

In assessing the likely demand for biotechnology products it is not sufficient just to look at what is happening in firms and their immediate market environment. There is no one 'market' for biotechnology products: there are differences between sectors and between countries. You have instead to look at the institutional contexts of the biotechnology product's development. This paper reviews work which has been carried out by social scientists, especially those using 'social shaping' approaches, on the development of new products based on advances in biotechnology and on the creation of markets to go with these products. It examines work on public attitudes to the exploitation of the technology, focusing especially on the issue of social inclusion and exclusion and how biotechnology might make exclusion more likely. It concludes by considering what current differences in public attitudes to the development of some biotechnology-based products might mean for the development of markets for those products in the UK.     

Biotechnology and the UK 2000-05: Globalization and innovation

This paper discusses some selected topics seen as being most important in currently affecting the development of biotechnology in the UK. The importance of demand side factors such as the role of professional experts, regulatory bodies, retailers, public opinion and political activity in stimulating or discouraging innovation in biotechnology is discussed. Supply side factors are then analysed, particularly the major changes in the organizations which generate biotechnology innovations - especially collaborative alliances and network firms, and the restructuring of the chemical, pharmaceutical and agro-food industries which use biotechnology, via merger, acquisition, demerger and divestment. Two important aspects of the infrastructure for innovation, which are rapidly changing and generating debate and concern, are then considered. These are intellectual property regimes on the one hand, and corporate governance and the sources of finance for investment on the other. The issue of globalization of innovative activity in biotechnology and in the industries which use it is addressed next, and it is concluded that collaborative alliances are the main mechanism by which overseas sourcing of technology is taking place. Finally, future trends and some policy implications are considered.     

Globalization of biotechnology: The agglomeration of dispersed knowledge and information and its implications for the political economy of technology in developing countries

This study examines a contradictory development in the era of globalization wherein country-specific economic and socio-political institutional environment limits the global flow of technological knowledge and information, particularly in the biotechnology sector. International collaborations for developing new biotechnologies has increased significantly in recent years, but these have virtually bypassed firms in developing countries. The international flow of technologies tends to agglomerate in developed economies particularly in the US, where an appropriate mix of economic choices, social regulation and state action fostered institutional environments that facilitated the development and commercialization of biotechnologies. Moreover, with the heightening competition in the global economy, state and firms of developed economies have evolved into a relationship of close partnership. This shows that, far from being irrelevant, the state remains a political entity that structures the innovation system in order to promote the well-being of its firms. This calls for a re-thinking of the role of the state in technological and economic development, particularly among the developing economies.     

New migrant businesses and their workers: developing,but not transforming,the ethnic economy

ABSTRACT

Studies of businesses established by migrants to the UK traditionally stressed co-ethnic relationships as economic resources. More recent work identifies a new ethnic economy characterized by migrants’ common experiences, with ethnicity playing less of a role. The present study complements this newer perspective through investigation of the experiences of forty-nine business owners and sixty of their workers in the West Midlands. Economic relationships were central to the operation of migrant firms, and a minority of firms escaped from sectors traditionally dominated by migrant firms. Yet substantial continuity was also evident, including exclusion from the mainstream on ethnic lines and relations with workers characterized by informality. Migrant business is evolving but it retains many of its features; this pattern can be explained by combining the mixed embeddedness theory of the enterprise with labour process analysis.     

Comparative development of knowledge-based bioeconomy in the European Union and Turkey

Abstract

Biotechnology, defined as the technological application that uses biological systems and living organisms, or their derivatives, to create or modify diverse products or processes, is widely used for healthcare, agricultural and environmental applications. The continuity in industrial applications of biotechnology enables the rise and development of the bioeconomy concept. Bioeconomy, including all applications of biotechnology, is defined as translation of knowledge received from life sciences into new, sustainable, environment friendly and competitive products. With the advanced research and eco-efficient processes in the scope of bioeconomy, more healthy and sustainable life is promised. Knowledge-based bioeconomy with its economic, social and environmental potential has already been brought to the research agendas of European Union (EU) countries. The aim of this study is to summarize the development of knowledge-based bioeconomy in EU countries and to evaluate Turkey’s current situation compared to them. EU-funded biotechnology research projects under FP6 and FP7 and nationally-funded biotechnology projects under The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) Academic Research Funding Program Directorate (ARDEB) and Technology and Innovation Funding Programs Directorate (TEYDEB) were examined. In the context of this study, the main research areas and subfields which have been funded, the budget spent and the number of projects funded since 2003 both nationally and EU-wide and the gaps and overlapping topics were analyzed. In consideration of the results, detailed suggestions for Turkey have been proposed. The research results are expected to be used as a roadmap for coordinating the stakeholders of bioeconomy and integrating Turkish Research Areas into European Research Areas.     

英国生物技术成果转化经验及若干启示

英国是生物技术产业发展强国,综合实力仅次于美国.英国生物技术行业今天的繁荣,是与英国几十年对生物技术成果转化的政策扶持和一系列配套措施分不开的.本文回顾了自20世纪50年代起,英国政府在生物技术成果转化方面的政策和经验、政府的引领和投入以及一系列的孵化政策,促成了英国生物技术产业当今的成就.关注英国在生物技术产业成果方面的经验,旨在为我国发展生物技术产业健康、迅速发展提供参考.     

Postgraduate Forum on Genetics and Society: Report on the Fourth Colloquium

Abstract

The biotechnological revolution presents states and governments with a set of challenges that they have difficulty meeting. Part of the problem is associated with common perceptions of the speed, volume and the radical uncertainty of the new developments. Globalisation is also implicated, especially in relation to the development of the knowledge economy and the role of multinational actors. This in turn contributes to the apparent decline in the confidence of the public that national governments will be effective in addressing mounting concern about the dangers inherent in new techniques and products. Under these circumstances, ‘normal’ governance begins to look more like ‘failure’ governance. This article asks whether the effects of the biotechnological revolution on governance can adequately be explained by the critique of imperialism proposed by Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri, and whether the state is in danger of becoming implicated in sponsorship of modernist schemes to improve the human condition of the kind analysed by James E Scott. Biotechnology does appear to have imperial qualities, while there are strong reasons for states to see biotechnology as a feasible and desirable set of developments. For some critics of biotechnology, like Francis Fukuyama, this is a lethal combination, and the powers of the state should be used to stop biotechnological development. Others, by contrast and more pragmatically, propose a check on what the state will support by the application of precautionary principles. The article concludes that the association between the biotechnology empire and the state, combined with the inescapable duty of the state to be the risk manager of last resort, alerts us to the complexities of uncertainty at the same time as it renders a merely restrictive precautionary approach impracticable.     

Obituary: Dorothy Nelkin (30 July 1933–28 May 2003)

Biotechnologies are expected to have profound impacts across industrial and industrializing economies. One of the critical shaping influences on the development and use of these technologies will be the multiple social contests that have developed over their sustainability. For new technologies to become embedded in social, economic and institutional systems, processes of mutual adjustment must take place in both the technology and its social contexts. These adjustment processes tend to be complex and unpredictable, and their scale and scope reflect the anticipated significance of a new technology. I review the range of debates and contests about the impacts of biotechnology on environmental and social sustainability that will influence its development and diffusion. These contests are viewed as contingent, in that they are often framed by already established concerns and interests. In this sense, debates about biotechnology are primarily 'additive', rather than wholly novel.     

生物技术创新驱动天津经济社会高质量发展

生物技术作为21世纪最重要的创新技术之一,颠覆性、引领性、系统性特征日益凸显,智能化、汇聚化、变革化模式不断涌现,在引领未来经济社会发展中的战略地位日益突出。本文深入剖析了天津市发展生物技术和生物产业的基础和优势,介绍了天津市近年来在支持生物技术和生物产业方面的总体部署和举措,以及在支撑生物产业发展方面取得的重要进展,指出大力发展生物技术是天津市实现高质量发展的重要路径,并对生物技术支撑国家和区域经济社会可持续发展、助力天津全面建成社会主义现代化大都市进行了展望。     

Genomics: shifts in metaphorical landscape between 2000 and 2003

Modern biotechnology has been characterized by being surrounded by scientific and public debate and by interest conflicts. An early Danish debate and regulation has been criticized for inhibiting or retarding development and thus growth. Though much regulation and debate have been transferred to the European arena, their role and extension are still an issue. In this paper, the often anticipated innovation-inhibiting effects of regulation are questioned by giving an account of regulations and debates in Denmark. An account which includes the shifting positions of industry, the research community, environmental groups, regulators and other interest groups. The paper indicates that the regulatory measures, introduced as a response to public and interest group critique, have generally reduced industrial uncertainty and promoted industrial Danish biotechnology development. It is further found that regulation and debate changed the rate and direction of new biotechnology development, contributing to technology acceptance, without however ensuring it. The paper thus questions the caricatured assumptions in economics and industrial policy that regulation restrict techno-economic growth. The paper further states regulation and controversies to have contributed actively to the specific technology development, but also states the difficulties in setting radically different technology development agendas.     

Xylitol bioproduction: state-of-the-art,industrial paradigm shift,and opportunities for integrated biorefineries

Abstract

Recent advances in biomass conversion technologies have shown a promising future toward fermentation during xylitol production. Xylitol is one of the top 12 renewable added-value chemicals that can be obtained from biomass according to US Department of Energy (USDOE). Currently, xylitol accounts for approximately US$823.6 million of annual sales in the market, and this amount is expected to reach US$1.37 billion by 2025. This high demand has been achieved owing to the chemical conversion of hemicellulosic hydrolysates from different lignocellulosic biomasses, which is a costly and non-ecofriendly process. Xylose-rich hemicellulosic hydrolysates are the major raw materials for xylitol production through either chemical or biotechnological routes. Economic production of a clean hemicellulosic hydrolysate is one of the major bottlenecks for xylitol production on the commercial scale. Advancements in biotechnology, such as the isolation of novel microorganisms, genetic manipulation of xylose metabolizing strains, and modifications in the fermentation process, can enhance the economic feasibility of xylitol production on the large scale. Furthermore, xylitol production in integrated biorefineries can be even more economic, given the readily available raw materials and the co-use of steam, electricity, and water, among others. Exploring new biotechnology techniques in integrated biorefineries would open new markets and opportunities for sustainable xylitol production to fulfill the market’s growing demands for this sugar alcohol. This article is a review of the advancements reported in the whole biotechnological process for xylitol production, and involve pretreatment technologies, hemicellulosic hydrolysate preparation, xylose conversion into xylitol, and product recovery. Special attention is devoted to current metabolic engineering strategies to improve this bioprocess, as well as to the importance of xylitol production processes in biorefineries.     

The UK Nest Record Scheme: its value for science and conservation

Capsule A review of its methodology, analytical procedures and uses.

Aims To provide a comprehensive review of the UK Nest Record Scheme (NRS), its methodology and value to science and conservation.

Methods We reviewed the history of the development and current methodology used in the analysis of NRS data in the scientific literature and unpublished documents and from our personal knowledge.

Results The British Trust for Ornithology's (BTO's) NRS is the largest, longest running and most highly computerized such scheme in the world. Advanced and efficient techniques of data gathering, data capture and analysis are used. It was founded in 1939 to provide information on the breeding biology of birds, but has since developed into a key component of the overall monitoring strategy for birds in the UK. A range of specialized analytical methods is available for NRS data and potential biases need careful treatment. More than 250 scientific publications have used NRS data to describe aspects of basic breeding biology and performance, to study the population dynamics of bird populations and to investigate the demographic causes of bird population declines in the UK.

Conclusions Extensive long-term monitoring schemes, such as the NRS, that collate large historical data sets will become increasingly valuable for monitoring the impact of environmental change. While aspects of the NRS, its recording methods, data capture and analysis can be developed further, the scheme will continue to advance our understanding of both the impacts of new environmental stresses in the UK and the effectiveness of new conservation measures in the wider countryside. This has been amply demonstrated by its use for exploring the impacts of global climate change on the UK's avifauna.     

Biotechnology in the Production and Modification of Biopolymers for Foods

Abstract

Long-chain, high-molecular-weight polymers that dissolve or disperse in water to give thickening and sometimes gelling and/or emulsifying effects are indispensable tools in food product formulation. Most of these polymers are polysaccharides, and their functional properties in foods are determined by quite subtle structural characteristics. Biotechnology offers the means for the modification of biopolymer structure to achieve desirable changes in functional properties. In this article, the impact of recent advances in traditional biotechnology (fermentation and enzymology), as well as in the newer sciences of molecular biology (genetic manipulation and protein engineering), on the development of food biopolymers is critically assessed.     

新西兰生物科技及产业现状及特点

新西兰生物产业的规模并不十分引人注目,但却是新西兰经济中不可忽视的组成部分,其生物科技方面的优势领域主要是农业生物技术和生物医学两方面,例如大型动植物、生物安全、环境保护、神经科学、心血管疾病、结核与哮喘、糖尿病和癌症等研究领域。新西兰政府十分重视生物科技和产业的发展,在其2002年颁布的《创新增长框架》计划中,将生物技术列为未来的三大经济增长支柱之一,将加大对生物科技和产业的投入作为新西兰向高技术经济转型的重要举措。     

The cost of premature death from cancer attributable to alcohol: Productivity losses in Europe in 2018

BackgroundMore than 1.9 million people die from cancer each year in Europe. Alcohol use is a major modifiable risk factor for cancer and poses an economic burden on society. We estimated the cost of productivity lost due to premature death (under 65 years of age) from alcohol-attributable cancer in the European Union (EU) plus Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom (UK) in 2018.MethodsWe estimated cancer deaths attributable to alcohol using a Levin-based population attributable fractions method and cancer deaths in 2018 from the Global Cancer Observatory. Lost productivity was estimated for all alcohol-attributable cancer deaths by sex, cancer site, and country. Productivity losses were valued using the human capital approach.ResultsAn estimated 23,300 cancer deaths among people aged less than 65 in the EU plus Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and the UK in 2018 were attributable to alcohol (18,200 males, 5100 females). This equated to €4.58 billion in total productivity losses in the region and 0.027 % of the European Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The average cost per alcohol-attributable cancer death was €196,000. Productivity lost to alcohol-attributable cancer per capita was highest in Western Europe. Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Portugal had the highest rate of premature mortality from alcohol-attributable cancer and the highest productivity lost as a share of national GDP.ConclusionOur study provides estimates of lost productivity from alcohol-attributable cancer death in Europe. Cost-effective strategies to prevent alcohol-attributable cancer deaths could result in economic benefits for society and must be prioritised.     

The breeding status of Peregrine Falcons Falco peregrinus in the UK and Isle of Man in 2002

Capsule Numbers of breeding Peregrines are now higher than ever recorded and the recovery of the species within the UK has continued since 1991.

Aims To estimate the current Peregrine breeding population and its changes over time by recording breeding evidence and nesting range occupancy at known and potential Peregrine eyries.

Methods Attempts were made to check all potentially suitable Peregrine nesting locations for signs of Peregrine occupation. Causes of nest failure were documented where possible. Estimates of occupancy of nesting ranges that could not be visited were based on the proportion of ranges occupied from visited nesting ranges in the same region.

Results In 2002, 1530 Peregrine nesting ranges were estimated to be occupied, comprising 1456 pairs or single birds confirmed as in occupation, and 74 estimated extras (5% of total occupied nesting ranges) that were not visited. Including non‐breeding singletons holding nesting ranges, the UK and Isle of Man figure of ‘Ratcliffe pairs’ was 1437. This showed a 12% increase from 1991 and a 64% increase from the 1930s. However, there were geographical differences in change, with rapid expansion in the south of England tempered by declines in northern Scotland.

Conclusions The primary reasons for the population increase is primarily because of range expansion driven by a plentiful food supply and perhaps an increased tolerance of human disturbance. In areas where the species has declined, various factors (separately or in combination) including reduced food supply and persecution are likely to be involved.     

Environmental and economic impact of using new-generation wide-base tires

Purpose

New-generation wide-base tire (NG-WBT) is known for improving fuel economy and at the same time for potentially causing a greater damage to pavement. No study has been conducted to evaluate the net environmental saving of the combined system of pavements and NG-WBT. This study adopted a holistic approach (life cycle assessment [LCA] and life cycle costing [LCC]) to quantitatively evaluate the environmental and economic impact of using NG-WBT.

Methods

The net effect of different levels of market penetration of NG-WBT on energy consumption, global warming potential (GWP), and cost based on the fatigue cracking and rutting performance of two different asphalt concrete (AC) pavement structures was evaluated. The performance of pavements was determined based on pavement design lives; pavement surface characteristics, and pavement critical strain responses obtained from the artificial neural network (ANN) based on finite element (FE) simulations were used to calculate design lives of pavements. Based on the calculated design lives, life cycle inventory (LCI) and cost databases, and rolling resistance (RR) models previously developed by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) were used to calculate the environmental and economic impact of the combined system.

Results and discussion

The fuel economy improvement using NG-WBT is 1.5% per axle. Scenario-based case studies were conducted. Considering 0% NG-WBT market penetration (or 100% standard dual tire assembly [DTA]) as a baseline, scenario 1 assumed the same fatigue and rutting potential between NG-WBT and DTA; therefore, the only difference came from fuel economy improvement of using NG-WBT. In scenario 2, pavement fatigue cracking potential determined the pavement design life; both thick and thin AC overlay sections experienced positive net environmental savings, but mixed net economic savings. In scenario 3, pavement rutting potential determined the pavement design life; the thick AC overlay section experienced positive net environmental savings, but mixed net economic savings. The thin section experienced negative net environmental and economic savings.

Conclusions

The outcomes of scenario-based case studies indicated that NG-WBT can result in significant savings in life cycle energy consumption and cost, and GWP; however, these benefits were sensitive to the method used to determine the pavement performance; especially, a small change in pavement strain can result in significant change in pavement life. In addition, the effect of fuel price/economy improvement, discount rate, and International Roughness Index (IRI) threshold values was studied in the sensitivity analyses.

     

Ethanol Tolerance in Bacteria

Abstract

One promising application of biotechnology is in making the production of energy and chemical products from plants (“biomass”) practical. Applications include new markets for crops and reduction of wastes by using field residues or “wastelands” as feedstocks in biomass energy production. In addition, engineered crops could synthesize complex compounds. However, conversion to widespread use of biomass could have undesirable impacts. For example, changes in cropping practices may reduce wildlife populations or disrupt food chains. Other negative impacts of an environmentally insensitive development might include increased release of CO₂ (worsening global warming), and production of wastes, either water, chemical or biological, that present disposal problems. Biotechnology applied to biomass and chemical production has the potential for aiding economic development while greatly improving environmental quality. Environmental concerns are expressed in this paper, in the belief that consideration of potential problems at the inception of a technology increases the likelihood that environmentally sound courses will be pursued.