Healthcare and Life Sciences
The growth of healthcare and life sciences in recent years has played a major part in building the region’s knowledge economy. Over £200m has been invested in the past five years to develop world-leading technologies.
Bioscience is well represented in the regional economy with successful companies benefitting from research activities and a strong skills base in functional genomics, bio-informatics, biosensors, proteomics, ageing, oncology, cognitive neuroscience, stem-cell biology and bio remediation. Examples of companies that are taking advantage of the opportunities here are Sanofi-aventis and Immunodiagnostic Systems Ltd (IDS).
An important component in the success story is Newcastle’s International Centre for Life. The £55m Centre includes a commercial bio-science centre and the Institute for Human Genetics – part of Newcastle University – which is one of the world’s leading stem cell research centres. The University’s new Biopharmaceutical Processing Technology Centre is also undertaking new research into products made using advanced biotechnology.
Newcastle is also a designated city of science excellence. The Newcastle Science City project will see the creation of a ground breaking 100,000 sq m facility dedicated to the development of sustainable sciences.
