Systems Biology is an area that is getting a lot of attention these days. Systems Biology is “the study of biomedical problems evolving from the confluence of developments in molecular biology and other life sciences on the one hand, and advances in engineering, mathematics, physical sciences and IT on the other”. Sounds like innovations across disciplines to me.
The UK has a major opportunity to establish a name for itself in this nascent industry. The UK missed out on the commercial rewards of the microchip revolution and other related high tech industries. Name a single UK computer manufacturer ? I think we find it difficult to accumulate the capital to quickly expand into new markets and to deliver products well suited to the marketplace. I read recently in Ingenia that the UK hopes to build on its strengths in biotech research and combine this with engineering knowledge to make a splash in Systems Biology. It is one close to my heart since I work at the interface of engineering and biology in my own start-up. I think there is a need for more engineers to have a better understanding of biology and the needs of the medical field in order to bring the latest engineering technologies to bear. Optos is a company profiled in the same magazine. They just won a major engineering prize, a silver McRobert medal. This exciting company uses lasers to image the entire eye, something not previously possible. They also use a novel revenue model whereby they charge on a per use basis rather than just selling the equipment. They took a risk in trying to implement a new model but it has been very successful.
The opportunities for sustainable value creating businesses in the systems biology space are significant and I hope are more widely considered in the UK where we have a chance to take a real lead here.
