Biopharmaceutical Ecosystems

The ecosystem perspective on organizations and economic settings is relatively new. It expands on work that looks at bio-clusters, concentrating on the relationship between human and financial capital. The perspective takes an expansive view of biopharmaceuticals in relation to stakeholders and the social, political, and economic landscape, including other life science companies, academia, non-profits, government entities, and health systems. The biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries have been merging for some time, with biotechnology often portrayed as a disruptive innovation to the pharmaceutical industry. A fuller description of this activity put into the greater context of the ecosystem perspective is warranted.

Biopharmaceutical Ecosystems: A Comparative Study of U.S. and European Systems puts forward a picture of biopharmaceutical ecosystems in the USA and Europe. It examines and expands current thinking on the development of the ecosystem perspective on biopharmaceuticals. The title considers multiple locations, with countries in the top 15 of biopharmaceutical exporters selected. It pays particular attention to shifts in the political and economic landscape, and how such changes affect ecosystems. The underlying aim of biopharmaceutical ecosystems is to further the development of new drugs, reduce time to market, and lower costs. In explaining ecosystems, the book applies a quadruple helix model - academia; consumer/society; government; and industry - to each region and country in light of this triple aim.