Life Sciences by Indianapolis Monthly

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

As Indiana’s life sciences community continues to grow, the tremendous impact it has on the state’s economy and the health of people all over the world is impossible to overlook.

LIFE SCIENCES In partnership with

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 1

10/2/12 5:20 PM

A Catalytic State Over one-quarter of a billion dollars raised for Indiana life sciences opportunities Indiana’s life sciences sector has a $44 billion direct economic impact In 2011, Indiana’s life sciences exports totaled over $9 billion, ranking the third highest in the United States Indiana has one of the highest numbers of life sciences jobs and life sciences companies in the U.S.

Indiana is a national center for the life sciences, creating collaborations and opportunities, growing our economy, and advancing life-saving medical innovation. Learn more at www.biocrossroads.com

BIOX_19xx_IBJ-IndyMonth-2012.indd 1 BIOCROSSROADS.indd 1

we connect

we invest

we educate 10/2/12 10:29 AM 10/3/12 3:29 PM

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

by Laura Kruty

PHOTO provided by roche diagnostics corporation

Healthy Economy, Healthy People

The work of Indiana’s life sciences industry has a major impact on the state and patients all over the world

November 2012 | LIFE SCIENCES 3

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 3

10/2/12 5:20 PM

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

ol. Eli Lilly, a pharmaceutical chemist and Civil War veteran, was disappointed in the poorly prepared and typically ineffective medicines of his day. So in May 1876, he founded Eli Lilly and Co. on the principles of manufacturing the highest-quality medications based on the best science of the times. As the public caught wind of his quality products that worked as advertised, sales and staff continued to grow. The rest, of course, is history. He couldn’t have known it at the time, but Lilly was setting the foundation for

David Johnson

DePuy Orthopaedics, manufacturing fiber and wire splints, in Warsaw. A former DePuy salesperson, Justin Zimmer, branched out after DuPuy’s death to form Zimmer Holdings, another orthopedics company, in 1927. DePuy, Zimmer, and Biomet, all based in Warsaw, now comprise nearly onethird of the world’s orthopedic sales. In the ’60s, the late Bill Cook started making wire guides, needles, and catheters out of his Bloomington apartment. Now, Cook Medical Group is composed of 42 companies and employs 10,000 people around the world. That same de-

“We have great public universities, and a lot of innovation has come from those places. We’ve always attracted hard-working, ambitious people to take advantage of that.”

what would become one of the leading life sciences centers in the country. “This has always been a strong part of the country for business, but also for education,” says David Johnson, president and CEO of BioCrossroads. “We have great public universities, and a lot of innovation has come from those places. We’ve always attracted hard-working, ambitious people to take advantage of that.” About 20 years after Lilly set up shop in Indianapolis, Revra DePuy founded

cade, Bill Eason left a position with Ford Motor Company and put his chemical engineering skills to use—in his garage, no less—creating diagnostic products to help doctors analyze lab results in-office. What started out as BioDynamics would eventually become the North American headquarters of Roche Diagnostics, the No. 1 in-vitro (test tube) diagnostics company in the United States. As the community grew over the years, it spurred the beginnings of the Central

Indiana Life Sciences Initiative—an organization that supports, markets, and generates investment money for Indiana’s life sciences industry—in 2002. Eventually, its name was changed to BioCrossroads. From humble beginnings in the 19th century, the life sciences industry has grown into a multibillion-dollar economic powerhouse responsible for tens of thousands of jobs. In 2011, life sciences products accounted for more than $9.3 billion, or nearly one-third, of the state’s exports, according to BioCrossroads. Since 2002, the number of life sciences companies in Indiana has increased by 21 percent to more than 800. Those companies account for nearly 50,000 jobs in the state. Without a doubt, life sciences companies are major contributors to the state’s economic health. But their work, which includes everything from designing clinical trials and developing medications to making diagnostic tools and providing health insurance, is also improving the physical health of not just Hoosiers, but people all over the world. Here in Indianapolis, Roche Diagnostics and Indiana Blood Center are two such players positively impacting the economy, community, and, perhaps most importantly, patients’ health.

Roche Diagnostics and personalized healthcare It’s hard to read a newspaper without seeing a story about healthcare in America. More often than not, the news is sobering. “The U.S. healthcare system is not up to par, even with as much as we spend, with other healthcare systems across the

4 LIFE SCIENCES | November 2012

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 4

10/2/12 5:20 PM

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

globe,” says Roche Diagnostics President and CEO Jack Phillips. The Affordable Care Act, set to be fully implemented in 2014, can potentially bring more than 30 million uninsured people into the healthcare system. The shift from a fee-for-service model to an outcome-based model calls for greater and more effective quality of care. That’s where Roche is poised to make the biggest impact. Although Phillips says diagnostics are typically misunderstood and undervalued, their work is far more important than simply providing test results. “The information we provide has a significant impact in the treatment and care of patients,” Phillips says. With the help of molecular diagnostics, Roche is focusing its efforts on personalized healthcare, which is selecting the right treatment for the right patient. “We’re committed to and believe in personalized healthcare,” Phillips says. “We believe we must drive solutions that are more tailored to finding effective outcomes for specific populations of patients. This is an innovative approach with tremendous opportunity to impact healthcare.” Personalized healthcare eliminates the often-ineffective “one-size-fits-all” approach to treatment. Two patients may be prescribed the exact same treatment, but because of their individual genetic makeup and molecular mutations that can occur, their outcomes can be vastly different. “A drug treatment can be highly effective in one patient and not effective at all in another,” says Rod Cotton, Roche’s head of medical and scientific affairs. “It can be well tolerated in one while causing severe or life-threatening side effects in another.” Because of advances in the field of molecular diagnostics, which closely examines a patient’s genetic makeup and biomarkers, physicians are better able to identify the best course of treatment in order to have positive outcomes. “Last year, the FDA approved Roche’s cobas HPV test, which not only screens for high-risk HPV virus genotypes but looks specifically for HPV 16 and 18.

Lori Ball and her siblings learned important life lessons from their parents: to have a giving spirit, to exercise loyalty, to be fearless decisionmakers, and that there were no limits to what they could do. From a young age, the Anderson native was exposed to numerous learning opportunities. This strong foundation enabled Ball to make gutsy choices when it came to her career. It’s all paid off for the chief operating officer of Indianapolis-based BioStorage Technologies, a global leader in comprehensive sample-management services including consulting, logistics, temperature-controlled storage, and innovative bioprocessing services for millions of human biological, animal, and agricultural samples. Ball provides executive leadership for the company’s domestic and global operations, which is responsible for global biorepository operations, logistics expansion strategies, sample-management solutions, and global strategic marketing and business development. It’s a job that keeps her hopping around the clock.

LIFE SCIENCES

SPOTLIGHT

Name Lori A. Ball Title Chief Operating Officer Company BioStorage Technologies

“When you have a global position, the sun never sets, literally,” she says. “But this is a great place to be.” Prior to her current role, Ball learned the industry while working for Covance. When several employees there started BioStorage Technologies and asked her to come on board, it was a no-brainer. “This job is a culmination of all my prior experience. It just feels like home.” BioStorage Technologies manages the complete life cycle of samples—from the creation of a strategy plan, to the collection, logistics, bioprocessing, storage, retrieval, and disposal of samples. Its use of custom-designed, temperaturecontrolled packaging and partnerships with transportation companies worldwide ensure that samples are moved safely and properly. Relofleet, the company’s one-of-a-kind mobile biorepository, transports individual samples of all types and temperatures within the U.S. All of this supports the efforts of bioscience researchers worldwide. Making an impact in the industry is important to Ball. “I watch treatments, cures, and prevention go out into the life sciences world, and I know that in some way or another our company had something to do with that,” she says. “That’s so rewarding.” Ball looks forward rather than backward. “What keeps me going every day is knowing that tomorrow can be a better day,” she says. by Shari Held

November 2012 | LIFE SCIENCES 5

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 5

10/2/12 5:20 PM

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

Rod Cotton

Whitney Green

These two types are responsible for 70 percent of cervical cancers,” says Whitney Green, Roche’s senior vice president of molecular diagnostics. “The test is recommended, in addition to a traditional Pap smear, for women between 30 and 65. By identifying which patients carry those genotypes, physicians know which patients to keep a closer eye on.” The ATHENA study, in which 47,000 U.S. women participated, found that one in 10 women with normal Pap smears who tested positive for genotypes

16 and 18 had pre-cancerous lesions. “If you get to patients with lesions early enough, you can take steps to prevent cancer,” Cotton says. “We can now take a quantum leap in reducing the incidence of disease for an entire subgroup population.” Diagnostic tests account for about 2 percent of medical spending but impact more than 70 percent of therapy-related decisions globally, Green says. “Molecular diagnostics continues to have a tremendous impact on the way diseases are diagnosed and treated,” he says. “It will continue to play a more important role in healthcare in the future.” Its use in personalized healthcare gives better guidelines on how to treat patients, minimizes adverse reactions from therapies that are not beneficial, and helps healthcare be more effective overall.

Additionally, Cotton points out, molecular diagnostics gives physicians the information they need to be more confident that what they’re prescribing will lead to a better outcome. Roche is in a unique position to be a leader in personalized healthcare because it not only has a diagnostics division, it also has a pharmaceutical component. Using companion diagnostics, the company can identify patients who are most likely to benefit from the drug in development. “Personalized healthcare and Roche’s leadership have driven a huge shift in terms of drug discovery and development,” Cotton says. Gone are the days of developing a widely distributed drug that only benefits a small group of people, Phillips notes. In August 2011, Roche received Food and Drug Administration approval on the cobas 4800 BRAF V600 Mutation Test, designed to look for BRAF mutations in patients with metastatic melanoma. Those

PHOTO provided by roche diagnostics corporation

Roche Diagnostics’s Indianapolis Campus

6 LIFE SCIENCES | November 2012

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 6

10/3/12 11:19 AM

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

As senior vice president and chief financial officer for Roche Diagnostics, Wayne Burris’s job has taken him to countries such as Germany and Hungary. But his focus is now on Indianapolis and the many things in store for the Roche Diagnostics North American headquarters on the city’s northeast side. In 1986, Burris, an Indianapolis native and Butler University alumnus, joined Boehringer Mannheim as a director of finance for the diagnostics business. That kept him busy for six years, at which time Roche restructured its business areas, creating five distinct sectors within its diagnostics division. Burris then became global controller for the diabetes care business based in Mannheim, Germany. In 1996, Burris came back to Indianapolis and rejoined the local operation of Boehringer Mannheim as CFO over the diagnostics and pharmaceutical divisions. After Roche acquired Boehringer Mannheim in 1998, the divisions came under different leadership, and Burris, now a 26-year employee, went to work solely for the diagnostics side of the business.

LIFE SCIENCES

SPOTLIGHT

Name Wayne Burris Title Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Company Roche Diagnostics

who have a specific BRAF mutation are eligible to take Zelboraf, which, in clinical trials, extended survival without any further complications by nine months. “By fitting treatments to specific groups of patients, we can give them a very effective therapy that has outstanding results,” Phillips says.

Beyond science Personalized healthcare is one of Roche’s missions. But the organization also places great importance upon company culture, employee development, and giving back to the community. Wayne Burris, chief financial officer and senior vice president, explains that Roche wants to be the best place to work in the city. Burris says that distinction is ultimately up to the more than 4,200 employees who report into the Indianapolis campus.

As CFO, much of his role is centered around budgeting, planning, and making available the necessary financial resources to execute those plans. He also serves on Roche’s global finance operating committee, making and approving recommendations on global business and operating plans and global investments. His goal is to help Roche secure more of the market share in the U.S. and North America. The changing healthcare market, he says, provides lots of potential to meet that goal. “We are making investments in product portfolios, sales and marketing, and infrastructure to take advantage of the marvelous opportunities for Roche to strengthen its leadership.” Throughout his two-plus decades with Roche, Burris has had much flexibility to pursue different careers within the company. “Roche continues to invest in me from a development standpoint in order for me to continue to enjoy what I do, do it well, and pursue my goals,” he says. As a leader, he says he’s in a prime position to develop and grow employees so that the company gets the most out of them—and they get the most out of the company. Although Roche may be considered one of Indianapolis’s “best-kept secrets,” Burris predicts that won’t continue for long. “It’s good for the community to know what we do,” he says. “We’ll continue to do the things we believe are right for our business and right for the city we live in.” by Laura Kruty

November 2012 | LIFE SCIENCES 7

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 7

10/2/12 5:21 PM

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

Mike Parejko, chief operating officer and executive vice president for Indiana Blood Center, says, “Even though they had a new CEO come in three years ago, they’ve been very steady with that mission of providing in the community.” The two organizations also partner on a scholarship program for high school seniors throughout the state. (See page 11.) Roche and Indiana Blood Center have a connection on another level as well— one that directly impacts the safety and health of Indiana residents. Indiana Blood Center uses Roche’s automated testing platform to screen donated blood for 11 infectious agents, including HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C. The new donor-testing technology has not only enabled Indiana Blood Center to more efficiently test blood, but it’s opened up additional avenues of business for the nonprofit.

Indiana Blood Center

“We want our employees to feel a connection to who we are and what we do in improving the lives of patients,” he says. “We try to make sure that the jobs people come to every day are rewarding and that those employees have the support they need to learn, grow, and pursue their career goals. We invest a tremendous amount into employee development.” Recently, Roche announced a $300 million expansion, which will fund a new commercial education center and renovations to existing buildings, and will add up

to 100 jobs by 2017. “It’s important that Roche continues to invest in itself and by doing so we create a company that contributes to the community,” Burris says. Each year, Roche donates more than a half-million dollars to local charities. Another way they actively give back is by donating blood through a relationship with Indiana Blood Center. “We continue to see our numbers grow as far as participation and number of units donated,” Burris says.

Each day, Indiana Blood Center distributes an average of 550 units of blood to more than 60 hospitals around the state. According to discharge records from the Indiana State Department of Health, nearly 75,000 patients in Indiana received a transfusion in 2010, the most recent data on file. Many of the patients received multiple transfusions and multiple units each time. Because the need for blood is constant and time-sensitive, Indiana Blood Center continuously looks for ways to streamline its processes and expedite its systems. The Roche technology is a prime example. “As we looked at what we were doing here in Central Indiana, it made absolute sense to partner with a local provider,” Parejko says. “We looked at it as, how can we partner in a community where we both live and work?” The Roche equipment offers more flexibility, Parejko notes. The old system had to be “primed” each time it ran. Now, the machines are primed once per 24 hours. The automated platform allows testing to start as soon as samples are received, as

PHOTO by Tony Valainis at Indiana blood center

The work of Indiana Blood Center

8 LIFE SCIENCES | November 2012

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 8

10/3/12 11:19 AM

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

opposed to samples having to be submitted in batches with the old system. “It allows us to test more samples in a smaller space and more efficiently with the staff we have,” he says. More streamlined operations have saved time in the overall testing process. “The quicker the samples get to the bench, the faster we can get the testing done, and the quicker we can get results out,” says Tara Williams, Indiana Blood Center’s director of testing laboratory. Additionally, Roche has designated Indiana Blood Center as a Center of Excellence. Roche will bring in clients from all over the world to Indiana Blood Center in order to see its equipment in use and test new technology. The new testing platform has drummed up new business. Since partnering with Roche, Indiana Blood Center now tests donor samples for Virginia Blood Services, and starting in January, it will test samples for Michigan Blood. These are in addition to testing samples from the Hoxworth Blood Center in Cincinnati, something Indiana Blood Center has done since the 1990s. It also recently joined together with the Indiana Organ Procurement Organization to perform infectious-disease and blood-type testing on organ donors. With this increased business, Indiana Blood Center is expected to test more than 525,000 blood samples, compared to 250,000 samples just a few years ago. “The efficiencies we’ve found in our lab have allowed us to aggressively go out and partner with others, whereas before, we had limitations,” Parejko says. Testing donor samples is only one service Indiana Blood Center offers. Its 24/7 Reference Lab, which is the only American Association of Blood Banks–accredited reference lab in the state, tests samples in order to find blood suitable for transfusion patients. Patients who have received multiple blood transfusions, such as those with sickle cell anemia, may have built up many antibodies in their system. In this complicated and time-consuming process, sophisticated tests comb through samples looking for compatible blood that the recipient’s antibodies will not reject. “That could be one in a million,” Parejko says. “It’s a long, drawn-out test.”

Philip S. Low, Ph.D., grew up as a “faculty brat” in West Lafayette, where his father was an agronomy professor studying the physical chemistry of soils. Low pursued an undergraduate degree in chemistry at Brigham Young University and earned his Ph.D. studying the biochemistry of marine organisms at the University of California, San Diego. He did post-doctorate work in protein thermodynamics at the University of Massachusetts. In 1976, he returned to West Lafayette, and for many years he and his father worked at Purdue in related fields of chemistry. Today, Low has more than 35 patents or pending patents to his credit. He has received numerous awards for his research, including the National Institutes of Health MERIT Award. While doing research for Monsanto, Low discovered that some plant cells recognized and desired certain vitamins, internalizing them by a mechanism called receptor-mediated endocytosis. “We discovered that we could exploit this pathway,” Low says. “The vitamin

LIFE SCIENCES

SPOTLIGHT

Name Philip S. Low, Ph.D. Title Ralph C. Corley Distinguished Professor of Chemistry Company Purdue University

served as a Trojan horse and carried the attached molecule into the plant cell.” Subsequent research in animals showed that while cancer cells had an “enormous appetite” for folic acid (folate), very few non-cancerous cells had a receptor for it, and those that did had inaccessible receptors. The implications were huge: Drugs or imaging agents could be attached to folate, which would be absorbed by cancer cells only. In December 1995, Low founded Endocyte Inc., which creates homing molecules that can deliver either radioimaging agents or therapeutic drugs to cancer cells. Injecting patients with folate-linked radioactive compounds locates the cancer and metastatic diseases. “I like working on things that matter,” Low says. “It gives me quite a buzz when we find a new way to image or treat different diseases.” Currently, Low and coworkers have six folate-targeted drugs in clinical trials and a number in the pipeline, including ones for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. In 2011, Low founded On Target Laboratories, which creates tumorhoming molecules that deliver a fluorescent dye to cancer cells during surgery. This allows surgeons to clearly see the diseased areas that need to be removed. Low’s broad base of knowledge and interests keeps him working on new projects. Right now, he’s getting ready to do human clinical trials on a treatment for a new strain of malaria in the jungles of Vietnam. “I’m always curious about everything,” he says. by Shari Held

November 2012 | LIFE SCIENCES 9

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 9

10/2/12 5:31 PM

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

It doesn’t take long for Mike Parejko to identify who was responsible for his pursuit of a career focused on science. Without a doubt, it was his parents. Both were medical technologists, and his father taught premed and nursing at Northern Michigan University. Parejko spent a lot of time in his father’s lab and wanted to follow in his footsteps as a teacher. The Wisconsin native and Northern Michigan alum went to the School of Medical Technology at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Marshfield, Wisconsin, the same school his parents attended, to become a certified medical technologist. He worked as a medical technologist at a Northwestern University blood bank, part of a team researching autologous bone-marrow transplants in women with breast cancer. “It was cutting edge at that time to be doing bone-marrow transplants,” he says. After about five years, Parejko took a position with a major medical manufacturer, working to improve blood-transfusion medicine. “We were charged with educating doctors, nurses, and the general public on

LIFE SCIENCES

SPOTLIGHT

Name Mike Parejko Title Chief Operating Office and Executive Vice President Company Indiana Blood Center

leukocyte reduction,” Parejko says. Leukocyte reduction is when white blood cells are removed from blood or blood components before a transfusion. In 2004, Parejko joined Indiana Blood Center as its vice president of quality systems, responsible for staff development and training and quality assurance and compliance in what is a very regulated industry. “Whenever we make a decision, the first question we ask is, how does it impact quality and patient care?” he says. “If it’s positive, we go down the path toward implementation. We’re here for the patients we serve.” Parejko now serves as the organization’s executive vice president and chief operating officer, a role that enables him to have his hands in several different departments. He oversees the blood center’s business strategies and directs collection, production, testing, and labeling operations, as well as blood-component distribution. Other job responsibilities include information technology, human resources, materials management, and plant-services departments. It’s easy for Parejko, who has a master’s in management from Indiana Wesleyan University, to point to his favorite aspect of working at Indiana Blood Center. “Without question, it’s the people I work with, the special people we have here who dedicate the time and energy to assure that the communities we serve have an adequate and safe blood supply,” he says. “We have very special people here who don’t ask what’s in it for me; they ask what’s in it for the community. And then they deliver.” by Laura Kruty

Sometimes, they’ll have to look all over the country to find a unit of blood to match someone, says Dan Waxman, M.D., chief medical director at Indiana Blood Center. In its HLA DNA lab, also known as the Histocompatability Lab, Indiana Blood Center identifies matches for heart- or kidney-transplant patients at St. Vincent Indianapolis and Lutheran Hospital in Fort Wayne. By looking through samples from potential organ donors, it identifies any antigens (foreign substances that cause an immune response) on their white blood cells to see if the donor is a match. “Surgeons want to know: Is this a go or no-go?” Waxman says. “It’s our staff doing the testing that says, ‘Yes, you can go forward,’ or, ‘No, this is not compatible with this patient.’” The HLA DNA lab also performs relationship and paternity testing. Not only do customers seek this service to confirm basic paternity, but federal law requires that residents who want to bring family members to the United States from abroad must have DNA confirmation that they are related. For example, if a man wants to bring his wife and two children to Indiana, each person must submit a cotton-swab test to confirm that he is indeed the children’s father and that his wife is their mother. “We can send kits all over the world,” Waxman says. It’s not a huge part of their work—they may do 100 tests per year— but the advantage they have is a very quick turnaround. “Some of these cases are timesensitive,” Waxman says.

Focus on giving back Training and education are important to Indiana Blood Center. To that end, the organization’s Reference Lab hosts doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals for Blood Bank Crash Courses, which offer updates and training. Medical technologists may work in several different labs in a hospital, but they may not have blood bank–specific training, Waxman says. These free classes help them gain additional knowledge and skills

10 LIFE SCIENCES | November 2012

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 10

10/2/12 5:33 PM

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

by Shana Ngo

The Cycle of Giving Scholarship program honors high school students involved in blood-donation drives

High school students may not always get the credit they deserve. Truth is, Indiana high schoolers are among the largest donor base in the state to raise their sleeves and give much-needed blood through Indiana Blood Center. In fact, they account for nearly 16 percent of all blood donated in Indiana, according to Wendy Mehringer, the organization’s chief marketing officer. That’s why Roche Diagnostics funds, in part, Indiana Blood Center’s high school scholarship program. The one-time scholarship is available to a senior student who participates in both of the school’s blood drives in the academic year with Indiana Blood Center. School administrators award the scholarship to a student who meets criteria established by Indiana Blood Center and Roche Diagnostics. Eligible seniors must intend to study science, math, technology, or other healthrelated fields at any college or university within the state. Winners receive at least $400 to be used toward tuition, a certificate of recognition, and a red cord they can proudly wear during their high school graduation ceremony. Hoosier high schools that host blood drives are major contributors in blood donation across the state, resulting in 24,000 donation attempts. Mehringer stresses that Indiana Blood Center can’t deliver its nonprofit mission without the ongoing support of high schools and even colleges that together account for approximately 30 percent of blood donated every year in Indiana. Last May was the first time Indiana Blood Center and Roche awarded scholarships to eligible high school seniors—87 in all. The program will continue in the 2012-2013 school year for high school seniors who plan to pursue a sciencerelated education at an Indiana institution, and, through blood donations, learn the values of community involvement. As Mehringer explains, you don’t have to be rich to be charitable.

PHOTO provided by indiana state university

they otherwise may not have the opportunity to receive. Other ways Indiana Blood Center gives back is through its Transfusion Medicine Fellowship Program in conjunction with the IU School of Medicine, which offers a pathology resident one year of training. Its Specialist in Blood Banking school is a yearlong online program that teaches all aspects of blood banking, such as blood procurement and product manufacturing, transfusion medicine practice, and process control, among others. “We take students from all over the nation,” Waxman says. “It’s an extra designation you can get after your med tech degree. Training and education are big things for us.” Since the ’50s, Indiana Blood Center, which employs more Dan Waxman than 400, has supported hospitals in and around Indianapolis and now around the state. Researchers and pharmaceutical companies constantly seek out the organization for its base of samples from healthy blood donors. And although it may not be your typical life sciences organization, its status as a nonprofit lets it pursue avenues of business that other companies might not, says Wendy Mehringer, chief marketing officer. “Some of the things we do, maybe a forprofit company might say, ‘There’s not a lot of money in that; we probably won’t even go down that path.’ But we say, ‘We have the medical technologists, we have the lab. It seems to make sense, and it’s going to help the patient in the long run. Let’s look at it.” Providing a diverse range of services enables Indiana Blood Center to stay competitive and continue to bring vital and, in many cases, life-saving services to Indiana hospitals and patients. “We’re feeling pressure from hospitals to deliver a high-quality product at a competitive price,” Mehringer says. “Having that diversification allows us to deliver on that nonprofit mission back to the hospitals.”

November 2012 | LIFE SCIENCES 11

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 11

10/3/12 11:19 AM

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

by Laura Kruty

The Future of Life Sciences in Indiana

y many accounts, Indiana’s life sciences industry is going strong. Job growth is above the national rate, and the average salary is more than double the private sector average—nearly $81,000 compared to $38,100, according to a 2011 BioCrossroads industry report. In addition, the number of bioscience jobs in the state has increased 14 percent since 2001, compared to the national average of 6.4 percent. Between 2002 and 2009, Indiana saw life sciences job gains of 8,800. And, according to a report released earlier this year, Indiana is one of only

two states (New Jersey being the other) that has specialized bioscience employment in four out of five subsectors: agricultural feedstock and chemicals; drugs and pharmaceuticals; medical devices and equipment; research, testing, and medical laboratories; and bioscience distribution. What does this prove? “Indiana’s life sciences industry is now a national leader in almost every way that counts,” says David Johnson, BioCrossroads president and CEO. All over the state, whether their specialty is pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, devices, or healthcare information technology, life sciences companies are focusing on

research and development that impact so many aspects of our lives. Though there are many life sciences subsectors, Darren Carroll four in particular show great potential for growth, according to Darren Carroll, vice president of corporate business development at Eli Lilly and Co. Human medicine. This sector is bolstered by the work at Eli Lilly, as well as the IU School of Medicine,

PHOTO by Tony Valainis at Indiana blood center

More opportunities for growth and innovation are well within reach

12 LIFE SCIENCES | November 2012

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 12

10/2/12 5:33 PM

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

among others. There are many sources for growth and collaboration here, Carroll notes. Agriculture. Although Dow AgroSciences and Purdue create a strong foundation, Carroll says agribusiness is one area that probably could benefit from more startups. Animal health, for both food sources and companion animals. Elanco, Eli Lilly’s animal-health subsidiary, and Purdue University’s Department of Animal Sciences are just two major players working to improve food quality and safety, as well as animal health and well-being. Elanco also helps companion pets live longer, healthier lives. Medical devices. Warsaw’s big three— Biomet, Zimmer, and DePuy—comprise about one-third of the world’s orthopedic devices market. But there’s important work being done at IU, Purdue, and Notre Dame in the area of medical devices as well. Bloomingtonbased Cook Medical is the world’s largest private medical-device company and sells more than 15,000 products around the globe. With its proven industry drawing startups and skilled employees, Indiana is in a strong position to take advantage of future opportunities. “This whole life sciences sector is too complicated and too expensive to work from the ground up,” Johnson says. “If you don’t already have a strong life sciences sector in this economy, you’re not going to start one. You have to look at what you’re good at and how to get better.” One factor BioCrossroads has identified to strengthen life sciences is increased partnerships between industry companies and Indiana’s research universities. Between 2004 and 2008, IU and Purdue University spent $2.75 billion on life sciences–related research and development, according to BioCrossroads. These partnerships can be critical in meeting the industry’s ever-changing demands. “Increasingly, the university is interested in industry partners, particularly in an area with less federal funding available,” Johnson says. “We live in a time where

When Jack Phillips took over as president and CEO of Roche Diagnostics in January 2010, he fully embraced the organization’s overarching goal: to be the No. 1 in-vitro diagnostics (IVD) leader in North America. It’s true that Roche Diagnostics already is No. 1 in the IVD market today in North America, but Phillips and other leaders want to broaden the margin to be the sustainable leader—and not just because it means growth for the business. “This is so important because if we want to impact patients, our solutions need to be readily available and in the hands of physicians providing care for patients,” he says. Phillips has always been interested in biology and science. He’s turned that into a 20-year career in healthcare, joining Roche Group in 1999 when he worked for Ventana Medical Systems, a cancer-diagnostics company. Before taking over as president and CEO at Roche Diagnostics, Phillips served as Ventana’s senior vice president of commercial operations for North America and Japan.

LIFE SCIENCES

SPOTLIGHT

Name Jack Phillips Title President and Chief Executive Officer Company Roche Diagnostics

“In healthcare, it’s an opportunity to have a purpose-driven career—a career that can truly have an impact on the lives of people,” he says. Other company goals include being the best place to work in Indianapolis and to continue to give back to the community. Phillips is proud of employees’ engagement with Roche’s chosen charities. “Our involvement in local and national charities continues to grow,” Phillips says. “With that, it’s important for us to not just provide products and services to clients, but to actually be engaged in the multiple areas where we’d like to make a difference.” Phillips is always working toward improving Roche’s three key areas of focus: to be a customer-driven organization, to have high employee satisfaction, and to have a high-performing organization focused on commercial excellence. Phillips is excited to be in the ever-changing world of diagnostics. “What we’re learning about each individual now is exploding in the fields of genetic and molecular testing,” he says. “We know so much more about the human body than ever before. Through wonderful innovations in science, diagnostics offers us a unique opportunity to help improve the lives of patients.” The area is one in which he hopes to continue to make a difference. “Diagnostics continues to be a high-growth area because of the impact it’s having,” he says. “I see myself continuing to stay the course and be involved in diagnostics for years to come.” by Laura Kruty

November 2012 | LIFE SCIENCES 13

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 13

10/3/12 11:20 AM

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO INDIANAPOLIS MONTHLY

After working a couple of short-term jobs, such as selling life insurance and analyzing soil, Tara Williams learned from a co-worker at Country Mark CoOp about an open position at Indiana Blood Center. She applied for and landed the job with the intention of looking for a new position a short time after. That was in 1993. Nearly 20 years later, Williams is still with Indiana Blood Center, currently serving as director of the testing laboratory. She graduated from Butler University in 1993 with a degree in biology. She came on board with Indiana Blood Center as a night-shift technician later that same year. Though she didn’t have experience working in a blood bank, her work analyzing soil in the Country Mark Co-Op laboratory came in handy. “The one thing consistent in labs, be it soil or any other, is that you do the same thing over and over again,” Williams says. “If you can do that and still have quality work, you’re able to transition that to blood banking.” After about three years, she moved to the day shift, then was promoted to lead

LIFE SCIENCES

SPOTLIGHT

Name Tara Williams Title Director of Testing Laboratory Company Indiana Blood Center

technician, supervisor, manager, and finally director of the testing lab, a role she has held since October 2003. In July 2010, Indiana Blood Center’s Reference Lab and HLA Lab also came under her direction. As director of the Testing Laboratory, she oversees all regulatory, operational, human capital, and education activities of the Laboratory Services Testing Department. She ensures that all current procedures and practices are in compliance with local, state, and federal regulations and manufacturers’ guidelines. She also prepares and/or oversees budgets for the testing labs. The ever-changing environment has afforded her many opportunities at Indiana Blood Center. “There’s always something new and exciting,” Williams says. As she puts it, her job entails a “hodgepodge of different activities.” But no matter what she’s doing, it’s clear that she’s working for an organization she loves. “I’m proud to work for this company because of what we do for the community,” Williams says. “Without us, a lot of hospitals couldn’t do what they do in terms of providing care to their patients.” Occasionally, a recipient will send a thank-you note to Indiana Blood Center—a reminder to employees about the importance of their work. “It’s those kinds of stories that bring me back around to why I come to work every day and why it’s important that I do a good job and that the departments under me do a good job,” Williams says. by Laura Kruty

companies like Lilly and Roche are under pressure to make operations as streamlined as they can and have as many partnerships as they can. If they have a strong collaborative relationship with a research team and university, it’s as helpful as if they were employees of the company.”

on the horizon Thanks to the work and energy of BioCrossroads and other lifesciences stakeholders, including research universities, philanthropic donors, and government partners, the industry’s future looks bright. “Growth needs to take place in Indiana—not somewhere else,” Johnson says. Here’s a look at just some of the important scientific and medical work being done: Using technology developed at Purdue University, SonarMed is helping improve the placement and monitoring of endotracheal tubes in patients who cannot breathe on their own. With funding provided by BioCrossroads’ Indiana Seed Fund, Zorion Medical is developing a vascular stent that will absorb into the body within three to six months following implantation. Since 2005, more than 100 restaurants and restaurant chains in North America have switched to Dow AgroSciences’ Omega-9 oils, eliminating more than 1 billion pounds of “bad” fats from diets. IU School of Medicine researcher Dr. David Flockhart is an internationally recognized expert in the field of pharmacogenomics, the study of how a person’s genes affect his or her response to drugs. He and a team of researchers have discovered negative interactions between Plavix and certain stomach acid reducers. He also has found that some antidepressants can interfere with tamoxifen, the commonly prescribed treatment to prevent recurrence of estrogen-dependent breast cancers. On its Indianapolis campus, Roche Diagnostics makes more than 1.9 billion test strips for its ACCU-CHEK® and CoaguChek® products.

14 LIFE SCIENCES | November 2012

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 14

10/2/12 5:33 PM

INDIANA BLOOD.indd 1

10/3/12 3:25 PM

Because of us, Mary has another day with her grandson. Every day at Roche Diagnostics we focus on helping patients like Mary live longer, healthier lives. That’s why we work with researchers, healthcare professionals and patients to develop better diagnostic tests that lead to more effective, targeted therapies. Together, we’re making a difference. And that’s something for all of us to smile about. Improving the lives of patients.

Learn more about Mary’s story at http://becauseofus.roche.com/Mary

SSNOV12.LifeSciences.indd 16

10/2/12 5:34 PM