BIOTECHNOLOGY’S TRANSFORMATION
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LifeSciences 2013
Business in Vancouver Magazines
DON M. ENNS
Dominic Schaefer Photography
R
ecently the Federal Drug Administration in the United States cleared the way for ingestible sensors that are the size of a grain of sand to be embedded into an inert pill or pharmaceutical. Once in contact with the digestive fluids of the stomach, these “digital pills” can pass information from inside the user’s body to a patch worn on the skin that can wirelessly transmit key metrics, such as heart rate or whether the patient is taking their medications at the prescribed time and frequency. With the patient’s consent, it is possible for an individual to remotely monitor the condition of a child or aging parent from his or her smartphone. This is the kind of future that is coming from biotechnological research. For most people, biotechnology is a term that is not fully understood. In short, it revolves around biological processes and, thus, impacts forestry, agriculture, energy, the environment and fisheries. Even the wine we enjoy with a good meal has been touched by biotechnology. However, it is the connection between biotechnology and health care that is most prominent in people’s lives, which is increasingly changing how our health-care system operates. Biotechnology is causing a transformation that will enhance the relationship between the patient and health-care professional, which is the essence of our health-care system. Such change can and should ensure sustainability of our system, provided we have the willingness to adapt. Another example that typifies how biotechnology is changing our health-care system: Anne Wojcicki, the wife of Google’s creator, founded 23andMe, a company that analyzes your genetic makeup. For about $300 and a saliva sample, the company will provide insight into your risk for developing a disease such as Alzheimer’s, the probability of transmitting a disease to your children and your response to drug therapies. This is revolutionary in its simplicity, especially when one