WEEKLY E-NEWS FROM THE NORTH CAROLINA BIOTECHNOLOGY CENTER

IN FOCUS FEATURE

CRO Industry Expanding in North Carolina

From Our Web Site

Foundation Grants ECSU $750,000
Elizabeth City State University received a $750,000 grant from the GlaxoSmithKline Foundation to enhance experiential training for students enrolled in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill/ECSU Doctor of Pharmacy Partnership Program.

Norris Tolson and Bill Friday Chat Nov. 16
William Friday interviews Norris Tolson, president and CEO of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center, about biotechnology on UNC-TV's "North Carolina People" program.

Piedmont Pharmaceuticals Secures $8.5 Million
The company is developing medications to kill parasites. Officials will use the money to advance an insecticide-free head lice treatment, among other candidates in its product pipeline.

United Therapeutics Expansion Brings 300 New Employees
United Therapeutics announced in 2006 it would spend $54.3 million to build a 100,000-square-foot building to accommodate its clinical development and sales/marketing staff. The company could now spend around $100 million and double the size of its facility to 200,000.

In Focus

CRO Industry Expanding in North Carolina; 3,100 New Jobs Possible

North Carolina, already the world's largest concentration of contract research organizations, is seeing its industry get even larger.

Quintiles, INC Research, PRA International and Synteract all announced expansions or new locations recently. In sum, the four companies could bring an additional 3,100 jobs to North Carolina.

BioAbility founder and president Mark Dibner talks about the trends in the state's contract research sector, which has jobs with an average salary of $100,000.

Read the full article.

News from Other Sites

Biogen Idec Drug Shows Promise as Rheumatoid Arthritis Treatment
"The drug, known as baminercept, generated clinically meaningful improvements in patents who took part in the phase II trial."
From The Triangle Business Journal

Biotechnology Dean Leaves Rowan-Cabarrus Community College
"Just two months before the start of new biotech classes at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College, Dr. Ed Otto has left the school. Otto, who served as dean of biotechnology programs at RCCC for one year, took a corporate job outside North Carolina."
From The Salisbury Post

Plant Ethanol Could Help North Carolina
"Interest is rising in using cellulosic feedstocks, such as wood chips and corn stalks, to make ethanol. Scientists and engineers, who have been working on cellulosic ethanol production for more than 20 years, are fine-tuning the process so they can produce large quantities of fuel."
From The (Raleigh) News and Observer

Four Buildings at the North Carolina Research Campus Near Completion
"Construction will peak this spring and summer, said Tom Sanctis, vice president of commercial construction for Castle & Cooke."
From The Salisbury Post

How to Find and Investigate Ideas for New Products, New Ventures
"A more robust interpretation of clusters and their contribution to regional innovation economics was developed by Dr. Ed Feser, while he was a professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Feser is now a professor at the University of Illinois, and his concepts of clusters are just now beginning to be applied nationally in the area of new product development and entrepreneurial promotion."
From WRAL LocalTechWire.com

Officials Eye Region as Potential Biotech Center
"An industry leader says North Carolina could have a biotechnology future, and local officials want that future to be in northeastern North Carolina. Norris Tolson, president and CEO of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center in Research Triangle Park, near Raleigh, said that North Carolina could become more sustainable by producing more biofuels."
From The Daily Advance (Elizabeth City)

Web Site Aims to Pair Students with Local Companies
"As the first full-time director of Triad InternNet, Gloria Dunlap is building a Web service that will match students from the region's 15 colleges and universities with businesses that are willing to offer internships."
From The Greensboro News and Record

Community Watch

• Trimeris appointed Martin Mattingly chief executive officer.
• Talecris Biotherapeutics of Research Triangle Park won the 2007 Best Biotechnology Web Site award from the Web Marketing Association for its Prolastin.com product site.
• PharmaDirections of Cary hired Steven Gordziel as its practice head of pharmaceutical development.
• Chelsea Therapeutics International of Charlotte said the Food and Drug Administration accepted its investigational new drug application for Droxidopa, an oral, synthetic precursor of norepinephrine marketed in Japan for orthostatic hypotension.

Please send Community Watch items to Jim Shamp.

Announcements

Because of the Thanksgiving holiday, next week's BT Catalyst will be sent on Wednesday, Nov. 21.

BT Catalyst will not be published on Dec. 27, 2007.

---

This newsletter was sent on Thursday, Nov. 15, 2007. For the latest North Carolina biotechnology industry headlines, please visit the news section of our Web site.

Online subscription management is now available. We're still working on its functionality, so respond to this e-mail if you cannot change your preferences online.