tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
For much of 2009, the swine flu was the biotech industry?s cash cow. The virus?s sudden contagion last spring spread rapidly and lucratively to the local life sciences community, where a handful of companies scrambled to assemble enough money and staffers to launch studies, conduct research and shape products to respond to the first documented flu pandemic in 40 years.
Their battle against the H1N1 virus generated millions of dollars in revenue and lifted some stock prices to new yearly highs, with some leaping as much as 700 percent over the course of last year.
But the pandemic?s relatively light impact ? only 16,455 people died worldwide, compared with 1 million to 50 million deaths in past flu pandemics ? and a shorter-than-expected flu season has brought some of those biotechs, not to mention their stock prices, back to earth. The companies are now evaluating their performance and lessons learned last year to push for improving flu vaccine technology in time for the next outbreak.
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http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2010/03/15/story2.html?b=1268625600^3016321
Their battle against the H1N1 virus generated millions of dollars in revenue and lifted some stock prices to new yearly highs, with some leaping as much as 700 percent over the course of last year.
But the pandemic?s relatively light impact ? only 16,455 people died worldwide, compared with 1 million to 50 million deaths in past flu pandemics ? and a shorter-than-expected flu season has brought some of those biotechs, not to mention their stock prices, back to earth. The companies are now evaluating their performance and lessons learned last year to push for improving flu vaccine technology in time for the next outbreak.
....
http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2010/03/15/story2.html?b=1268625600^3016321