Making translation work

• Published in: Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) Vol. 332; no. 6036; p. 1359
• Main Authors: Williams, R Sanders, Desmond-Hellmann, Susan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States The American Association for the Advancement of Science 17.06.2011
• Subjects: Biotechnology; Biotechnology industry; Conventions; Drug Approval; Drug Discovery; Drug Industry; FDA approval; Humans; Intellectual Property; Public-Private Sector Partnerships; Technology Transfer; Translational Medical Research; United States; United States Food and Drug Administration; United States
• DOI: 10.1126/science.1209338
• ISSN: 0036-8075

Biotechnology's largest global event, The Bio International Convention, convenes at the end of this month in Washington, DC. BIO is a key forum for exploring partnering opportunities and discussing industry trends, investments, and policies meant to better the world. The gathering is timely because there is an increasing need for new therapies for relentless illnesses. In the United States, cardiovascular disease accounts for 34% of all deaths, and Alzheimer's disease afflicts one of eight Americans at age 65 (and nearly half of 85-year-olds). Treatments for these and other conditions are needed, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved only 21 new drugs last year, about half of the more than 40 drugs approved annually in the 1990s. New creative partnerships and regulatory procedures are needed if this is to change.