The good news: Greater Cincinnati's biotech sector is growing.

        The sobering news: Research efforts at the University of Cincinnati and Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center pale in comparison to major national players such as Duke University.

        About 150 regional experts in biotechnology gathered Tuesday at Children's Hospital for a daylong conference intended to help speed up commercial development of university research. The audience heard much about both the promise and the pitfalls of the biotech revolution.

        “We are entering the golden years of the exploration of biotechnology, of understanding human biology and disease, and really making a difference in enhancing the quality of life,” said Dr. Ralph Snyderman, president and chief executive of the Duke University Medical Center.

        An explosion of medical technology driven by advances in genetics, biochemistry, computers and various fields of engineering holds great promise for improving health care for all Americans.

        Breakthroughs include drugs such as the leukemia treatment Gleevec, robotic coronary bypass surgery, tissue engineering to grow new cells for damaged organs and genetic testing that can predict whether a medication will help treat a disease or cause a dangerous side effect.

        “Thousands and thousands” of promising ideas are emerging, and this is still just the beginning of the scientific explosion, Dr. Snyderman said.

        Yet converting new discoveries into products people can use remains a massive undertaking that will require reorganizing academic medical centers, rethinking an array of social and ethical issues, and even more spending by the government and private industry, Dr. Snyderman said.

        This despite projections that the United States will spend nearly $58 billion on medical research and development, up nearly eightfold from $7.5 billion in 1984.

        “Drug companies say it costs more than $800 million to bring a successful drug to market. But that's a cost that accounts for thousands of failures,” Dr. Snyderman said. “We could be a lot smarter ... and perhaps avoid investing hundreds of millions in so many failures.”

        At Duke University, officials have pumped millions into an array of biotech expansions: special animal research facilities, new equipment for structural biology and gene sequencing, powerful computers to analyze all the data.

        Duke also has reorganized its internal departments and created new companies to run parts of its research program and manage relations with the commercial sector.

        For example, Duke's Clinical Research Institute, a for-profit company, runs 60 human medical studies in 58 countries, boasts a staff of 780 people and collects about $90 million a year in revenue.

        “We're doing all the things Duke is doing, albeit on a smaller scale,” said Dr. Thomas Boat, director of the Children's Hospital Research Foundation.

        UC and Children's Hospital combined bring in about $15 million a year from clinical trials. But both institutions have launched several efforts to expand biotech research, from basic science to testing new drugs and devices in people.

        UC's Millennium Plan, launched in July 2000, calls for hiring 260 researchers within a decade. So far, 50 of those have been hired, said Dr. Donald Harrison, senior vice president and provost of health affairs.

        Meanwhile, Children's Hospital has started converting parts of the former Bethesda Oak Hospital in Avondale into research space. And UC has started moving researchers into the former Aventis Pharmaceuticals site in Reading. UC also hopes to rebuild its main medical school building.

        Biotech promoters are calling for more investment from Ohio, not just the federal government. They've found an ally in Gov. Bob Taft, who has developed an economic development proposal he calls the “Third Frontier.” But funding for higher education remains a hotly debated issue.

Builder's woes claim bankers
Boy, 11, cited for heroic act
Priest told to leave parish
Teacher at Elder denies misconduct
UC biotech team falls below Duke
Six-figure salary a subject of debate
GM lot cleanup raises concerns
Leisure sues Reeces over offer
Police chief decries loss of drug-free zone
School programs promoted
Tristate A.M. Report
Wyclef Jean cancels on his own
SMITH AMOS: A cop's life
BRONSON: 'Sin tax'
HOWARD: Some Good News
SAMPLES: Medical wrong object of run
Alarm alerts residents to fire
Cox Road work wreaks havoc
Deal will help kids play ball
Evans and Craft highest in rating
Falsely accused teacher wins suit
Steps aim to improve air at school
Warren's Kilburn eagerly assists
Withheld checks trickling out
Budget debate segues to hoops
Contestants and the Constitution
Defendant tape played during trial
Ky. keeps tabs on molesters
Man hurt in shootout
Search is on at UK
Security chief must think like a terrorist
Senate, House remain stalled on budget
suits filed against church in Louisville
UK trustees OK property swap