The Biotech Age

Since The Coming BioTech Age was published in 1999, much has changed in this fast-moving, volatile industry. Furthermore, media attention on biotech, especially ethical and legislative issues, has increased several times over. Biotech companies are featured regularly in business publications and general interest magazines and newspapers are running stories on cloning and stem cell research on an almost daily basis. Major developments that have taken place since the book was published, The human genome was mapped by Celera Genomics in June, 2000, well ahead of schedule, just a few months after a rough draft was finished. Stem cell research has become front-page news, with debates in Congress, the White House, and the public forums being hotly contested. The politically powerful "Right to Life" camp has split down the middle on the issue. Funding and investment in biotech have increased at a rapid pace, with the tech meltdown having little effect on the biotech environment. Market capitalization increased from USD138 billion when the book was written to over USD330 billion in 2001, despite declines in the overall markets. There are now more than 350 biotech drugs and vaccines in clinical trials, targeting more than 200 diseases. Total sales and revenues in at biotech companies both increased over 10 percent in the year following the book's publishing, despite the ongoing recession. Medical biotech companies have gained much more clout in negotiations with Big Pharma, especially after raising a record USD31 billion in 2000. In 2001, GM crops comprised 74 percent of all soybeans grown in the US, 71 percent of all cotton, and 32 percent of all corn. In 2000, the US Supreme Court upheld the rights of companies to patent hybrid and genetically modified plants. All of the above and more - including a new introduction and conclusion - will be covered in this completely revised and updated paperback edition.