Report: Bioscience a shot in the arm to Colorado economy

DENVER — The bioscience industry in Colorado is responsible for 28,510 jobs and $1.1 billion in venture-capital investments over a five-year period, according to a new report by an industry trade group.

According to the report released Wednesday by the Colorado Bioscience Association, the state now is home to almost 600 bioscience companies moving from early-stage research and development, through clinical trials and into full-fledged commercialization. Those companies are responsible for close to 600 commercial products developed in Colorado.

For 2013 and 2014, the report found that the industry in Colorado produced a total of 268 studies in recruiting through completion phases, a total of 223 drugs in discovery through approval phases, 630 approved medical devices and 223 devices in an investigational phase.

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“Strong connections in Colorado make it an ideal place to concept, launch and grow a successful bioscience company, said April Giles, the association’s president and chief executive, in a media statement. “Our track record for success continues to attract national attention as an important bioscience cluster. Entrepreneurs and founders want to commercialize their inventions in Colorado because of the availability of infrastructure and the collaboration among universities, nonprofit organizations and commercial incubators.”

State-funded grant programs also played a role in the industry’s growth, according to the study. The Bioscience Discovery Evaluation Grant Program and the Advanced Industries Accelerator Program, both paid for by the state of Colorado, were responsible in 2013-14 for creating 46 new companies, 426 direct jobs and $469.1 million in additional investment, leveraging the state’s investment 12.78 times the initial amount, according to the report.

The report was published in Colorado Bioscience magazine. Its accompanying article also highlighted the Boettcher Investigators in the Webb-Warning Biomedical Research program. Now in its sixth year, the program awards grants of $225,000 to the state’s best and brightest emerging scientists to cover up to three years of scientific research and position them for other grants and awards. All of the Boettcher Investigators who have completed their initial funding cycles have been awarded major grants from the National Institutes of Health or other major research funders.

This year’s class of investigators included Tai Montgomery, an assistant professor of biology at Colorado State University. Last year’s class included Loren Hough, an assistant professor of physics at the University of Colorado Boulder, and Christopher Gentile, an assistant professor of food science and human nutrition at CSU.

The report and the magazine are available at the CBSA website, along with a directory of bioscience resources in Colorado.