Core Values of Michigan’s Bio-Industry Shine in Combatting Covid-19

Success is measured not in dollars, but in stability of the food chain from sustainable agriculture, environmental conservation and climate change mitigation from bio-fuels, -plastics and -pesticides, quality of life improvement from infant warming blankets, artificial knees, and addiction treatment, and lives saved from prescription medications, diagnostic equipment, and vaccines. Tackling the world’s toughest and most critical problems is what those in the life sciences do every day.

Michigan companies are no exception – comprised of more than 1800 companies and 39,000 people, the Michigan bio-industry is home to a thriving mix of small start-ups and large international brands spread among medical device, pharmaceutical, academic and clinical research institutions, diagnostics and testing organizations, logistics companies, agri-bioscience, and life science related service providers. As the world struggles with the effects of COVID-19, Michigan companies have reinvented their jobs to be done at home, navigated supply chain and cash flow shortages, retooled their manufacturing, research and development efforts to focus on SARS-CoV-2, and dealt with an infrastructure that has pivoted toward fasttracking the essential tools and treatments to combat the new virus – all while facing public pressure to deliver a vaccine in record time and, simultaneously, not lose momentum on their existing research. Even for an industry used to extremes, this is uncharted territory.

For the industry outsider, understanding the essential qualities of the life sciences is a challenge. When the prevailing media representation of the industry is the profiteering, big business and the pop-culture version is the rogue scientist brazenly testing treatments on themselves, the keys to success in bio-research might be surprising. While business savvy and roguish passion are useful qualities in the life sciences, far and away collaboration, adaptability, and perseverance are the hallmarks of success and represent the industry’s core values.

The majority of bio-industry companies are comprised of small teams working on big problems. Take, for example, Tetra Therapeutics a sevenemployee company working on cutting-edge Alzheimer’s treatments, or Vestaron a twelveperson company developing sustainable pesticides that don’t damage pollinator populations or lead to pesticide-resistance. These companies, and others like them, are led by brilliant people with innovative ideas, but they would struggle to be successful without access to information and expertise from other organizations in the form of scientific advisory boards and peer-reviewed research, supportive tools and technologies, and a robust commercialization and investor-friendly ecosystem. That collaboration is the foundation of progress in the life sciences – when coupled with business flexibility and a ‘fail-forward’ mindset, even small organizations can solve big problems.

Consider Ecovia Renewables who followed its research to an entirely different industry. The company started on a mission to reduce fossil fuel dependency with a biofuel developed from a fermented biomass and realized the polymer had applications in cosmetics, agriculture, and biodegradable baby diapers. Like so many others, Ecovia changed its focus and now has a partnership with a French cosmetics company and a team of eight working on reducing waste from disposable diapers.

Of course, that flexibility and perseverance is not unique to small organizations. In 1965 researchers at Michigan State University discovered a chemical that slowed the regeneration of cancer cells - cisplatinum. Even though it was evident early on that the chemical had potential in cancer treatment, it took more than 13 years and a series of failed experiments before the drug Cisplatin was finally available for use. Today, more than 40 years later, Cisplatin is still the drug to which all other cancer treatments are compared.

And just this year, Esperion Therapeutics launched two new cholesterol-lowering drugs after a decade of determined effort - they are the first oral nonstatin drugs in the lipid-lowering space to hit the market since Lipitor was developed by Parke-Davis Pharmaceutical Research here in Michigan almost 25 years ago.

The perseverance of these companies means that thousands battling cancers and high cholesterol have treatment options that would have otherwise gone undiscovered. Built on a solid foundation, the bio-industry has essential qualities and core values that will continue to guide it through the current pandemic.

FEBRUARY 12TH — nearly a month before the first confirmed case of the novel Coronavirus in Michigan – Ann Arbor-based Arbor Biosciences announced they would be offering their NCov2019 panel free to researchers studying the source and evolution of COVID-19. APRIL 15TH — Twelve companies received State of Michigan awards, including Genemarkers and Oxus America, to begin the process of retooling their lab operations and manufacturing to expand COVID testing services and oxygen concentrator/ventilator production, respectively.

MARCH 17TH — Pfizer, whose largest manufacturing facility lies in Portage, MI, announced a partnership with BioNTech to co-develop a vaccine candidate for COVID-19.

MARCH 23RD — NxGen MDx announced the immediate launch of their COVID-19 diagnostic test to address the national test shortage.

MARCH 27TH — in2being, llc – a medical device development firm - held their first free “COVID Connect” webinar to help companies understand the Emergency Use Authorizations related to COVID-19. That webinar has evolved into a weekly national call with biomedical and medtech stakeholder updates, and a place to connect those with supplies to those in need.

MARCH 30TH — Advaita Bioinformatics announced that they were making their high-throughput biomedical pathway analysis software available for free to anyone doing COVID-19 research. They have since, on April 29th in partnership with Henry Ford Health System, used the platform to discover that methylprednisolone prevents some of the worst COVID-19 symptoms and reduces mortality.

MARCH 31ST — NeuMoDx Molecular announced they had developed a rapid, high-throughput SARSCoV-2 test approved under the FDA’s Emergency Use Authorization. APRIL 22ND — University of Michigan healthcare workers developed a 3D printed device that could allow multiple patients to be supported with a single ventilator and formed MakeMedical a company that will manufacture and distribute the VentMI.

APRIL 23RD — Emergent Biosolutions, with facilities in Michigan, became the US manufacturing partner for Johnson & Johnson’s lead vaccine candidate for COVID-19.

MAY 5TH — Pfizer and BioNTech dosed their first participants in the Global COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine Development program.

JUNE 9TH — MMS Holdings and IGY Life Sciences partnered to develop a COVID-19 antibody treatment that could support elderly and immune compromised individuals who would not be COVID-19 vaccine candidates.

JULY 1ST – Pfizer and BioNTech announced initial clinical success in their vaccine candidate, an effort dubbed “Project Lightspeed.”

AUGUST 6TH — Grand River Aseptic Manufacturing selected by the US DHHS and DoD to manufacture and distribute COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics.