NCBiotech News

North Carolina’s long history of supply-chain savvy is paying big dividends in its global life sciences leadership positioning. The state has earned about $16 billion in announced life sciences investments since 2024. A workforce of 76,000 continues to grow at more than 860 companies statewide. That includes 124 international companies from 26 countries

The gut and its complex microbiome are getting a lot of attention these days as we learn more about how greatly they influence human health. Wake Forest University School of Medicine recently invested in Winston-Salem’s Postbiotics Inc. (PBI), a start-up focused on gut-brain support, age-related disease and clinical microbiome innovations through non-pharmaceutical, therapeutic solutions. 

It’s hard to find an employer that won’t consider military veterans when looking to fill jobs with skilled, dedicated and hard-working employees. But that doesn’t mean hiring a veteran is a slam dunk. Employers and job candidates both have to do their part to make the arrangement work, said speakers at a recent workshop on employing veterans.

The recently passed federal defense budget for 2026 includes dedicated funding for the use of bioengineered blood vessels developed by Durham-based Humacyte to treat warfighter injuries.

Life sciences companies from around the globe continued to favor North Carolina for both new sites and expanded operations in 2025. Eighteen companies announced expansions, headquarters relocations, or new facilities totaling $3.79 billion during the year. The projects are expected to create 1,380 jobs in 10 communities across the state.

AskBio Inc., an RTP-based gene therapy company wholly owned and independently operated as a subsidiary of Bayer AG, has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) acceptance of its Investigational New Drug (IND) application for AB-1009, an adeno-associated virus gene therapy in development for late-onset Pompe disease (LOPD).

The Traits Company, an agricultural biotechnology company headquartered in Research Triangle Park, has announced a strategic collaboration with U.K.-based Wild Bioscience to accelerate the development of next-generation soybean varieties.

URO-1, a Greensboro medical device company specialized in prostate and soft tissue cancer diagnostics, is expanding its relationship with Novant Health as a designated vendor for its SUREcore and coreCARE platform for prostate biopsy.

In the Marvel Comics universe, Thor is known for wielding a magical hammer with superhuman stamina. But at North Carolina State University, Thor is a hammer-wielding robot in training for an earthly but backbreaking task: tending vegetables.

A new 5-year federal award of up to $24.8 million to the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM) will help address the nation’s growing organ donor shortage by bioprinting on-demand kidney tissues.

Two North Carolina-based contract research organizations (CROs) are joining forces to provide expanded clinical trial services in oncology.

WEP Clinical (WEP), a global contract research organization (CRO) based in Morrisville, N.C., has acquired Siron Clinical, a Netherlands-based European CRO specializing in clinical operations for biotech companies.

As doctors and patients shift more care delivery to the home, it’s becoming more apparent that homes aren’t always the safest place to be.

Apiject Holdings, Inc., has signed a lease for a 30,000-square-foot pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Apex, N.C. The site will also serve as the corporate headquarters of Vanguard Utility, Apiject's operational subsidiary.

Genentech, considered one of the biotech industry’s founding companies, announced in May 2025 a $700 million, 700,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Holly Springs. Today, the company announced it was more than doubling that investment to $2 billion, increasing production volume and scale at the facility, which broke ground in August 2025.