Cincinnati is uniquely positioned to play a significant role in the growth of life sciences that’s happening nationally. According to research and consulting firm Towards Healthcare, the sector is expected to grow three times its current state, fueled by advances in personalized medicine and technology.
This region is home to major anchor healthcare institutions, universities, and the Innovation District that impact the research and talent pipeline fueling life sciences companies. But turning that existing foundation into lasting growth takes more than institutions and infrastructure—it takes deliberate strategy, and REDI Cincinnati and LifeSciKY are leading the charge along with funders like the O.H.I.O. Fund and CincyTech.
Andrea Enders, vice president of business development for REDI Cincinnati, which attracts new businesses and helps existing ones expand, says Cincinnati is positioned to impact the full spectrum of life sciences, from discovery to commercialization. Discovery happens at healthcare and higher ed institutions, validation at clinical research organizations like CTI and MedPace, manufacturing at Thermo Fisher and Resilience, and then the product goes to market, a role filled by McKesson, Express Scripts, and Cencora. The region’s strengths in logistics also play a role. “You really can do every level of development here,” says Enders. “We’re winning in the space, and we have the success to prove it.”
Life sciences is one of REDI Cincinnati’s four target industries when working to attract businesses to the region—along with aerospace and aviation, food, flavoring and beverage, and chemicals and materials. Beyond infrastructure and logistics, Enders says the region’s culture of collaboration is important as well. “One of the things that really sets us apart is the Midwest work ethic and connections that you find here that you just don’t find in other places,” she says. Pharmaceutical company Cencoura recently announced it’s opening a distribution and storage facility in Harrison, while Eli Lilly and Resilience announced a $750 million facility coming to Blue Ash.
For startup businesses, the Northern Kentucky nonprofit LifeSciKY was created to give life sciences startups a lower cost and faster path to growth. The 15,000-square-foot space in the Covington’s OneNKY Center has more than $1.8 million in shared scientific equipment, shared lab benches, private lab suites, and other equipment that companies can access from day one. “The entire model is designed to remove the enormous upfront cost of starting a life sciences company,” says LifeSciKY Executive Director Christin Godale. “A founder shouldn’t have to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars buying equipment, building out a lab, and setting up infrastructure before they can even begin doing the science.”
Clareo Biosciences, CARTx Therapeutics, Mitsui Chemicals America, PAN Biologics, and Simbryo Technologies are some of the companies currently working out of the labs. Now that the physical lab is open, LifeSciKY’s next phase is focused on expanding the regional and statewide life sciences ecosystem. “Our goal is to remove as many barriers as we can between a good idea and a successful life sciences company,” says Godale.
[Top photograph: LifeSciKY Executive Director Christin Godale leads Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear on a tour of its new Covington lab space.]