The biomedical hub of Bellinzona is developing its strength: the Life Sciences Competence Center will be officially unveiled in the city in spring 2023. It becomes the third such competence center in Ticino, after the Swiss Drone Base Camp on the former Lodrino military airport and the LifestyleTech Center in Lugano.
Christian Vitta, Cantonal Head of the Department of Finance and Economic Affairs, explained at a press conference that in the canton of Ticino multiple pieces are coming together to create an ideal ecosystem for the birth and development of innovative scientific and economic activities. the Life Sciences Competence Center represents another building block in realizing the plans for the Switzerland Innovation Park Ticino. The canton is “ready to support the development of this center in very tangible ways,” he said in an article in the Corriere del Ticino newspaper and concludes that an exchange needs to take place between the worlds of academia and business. Piero Poli, President of Farma Industria Ticino adds: “This is a great opportunity to stimulate collaborations between industry and universities.
Creating an interface of this kind with a clear legal framework through the center “is an achievement we can be proud of”, sais Luca Bolzani, President of the cantonal startup promoter Fondazione Agire. “We will become an incubator of knowledge, with a particular focus on studies that might lead to real-world applications,” Bolzani explained to Ticino Scienza. In addition to the city of Bellinzona, the founding partners for the center include academic institutions in Ticino, industry associations, and Farma Industria Ticino. According to President Piero Poli, there are 50 member companies in total, with around 3,000 employees between them. Their annual sales amount to 2.5 billion Swiss francs.
Initially, the Competence Center will focus on the biofabrication of artificial tissue for use in drugs development. Biofabrication is an emerging technology that uses tissue engineering methods to create artificial human living structures and tissues. Biofabrication is a rapidly evolving field that combines biology, engineering, and advanced technologies to create innovative solutions for regenerative medicine and disease treatment.
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