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Workers on tap
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Pharmaceuticals
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CHICAGO
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IN PHARMACEUTICALS, the 20th century was the era of the small molecule. The industry thrived by identifying a steady stream of relatively simple compounds that treated lots of people, patenting them and making a fortune. In the early 21st century it has become harder for drugmakers to find new cures quickly enough to replace those on which the patents are expiring.
Many drugmakers, both established ones and startups, have sought salvation in biotechnology—the adaptation or exploitation of processes found inside living organisms. As in other areas of drug research, there have been setbacks as well as successes. But steady progress is being made in creating “biologics”, drugs that consist of giant molecules, hundreds of times the size of a conventional drug molecule, which are manufactured inside animal cells or micro-organisms such as bacteria. …Original Article
