Life-science patents increase in Missouri

A study by the Department of Economic Development’s Missouri Economic Research and Information Center shows life science-related patents went from representing 22 percent of all Missouri patents in 1963 to representing 30 percent of all state patents between 1993 and 2002.

Paul Sloca, communications director for the Missouri Department of Economic Development, said life science entails a wide variety of topics but a large portion of it has to do with the medical sciences.

“Patents are new ideas, and obviously you have to come up with new ideas in a variety of professions, especially the medical profession,” Sloca said.

According to the study, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has awarded more than 27,000 patents to individuals and institutions in Missouri since 1963 and of those, 25 percent have been in areas associated with the life sciences.

“This study shows that Missouri has a concentration of expertise in the emerging life sciences industry that is a strategic asset to the state’s economic future,” said Greg Steinhoff, director of the Missouri DED,

in a department news release. “This kind

of innovation can provide the kind of

high-paying, high-quality jobs that will lead to significant economic growth.”

The study did not look at other states or how Missouri’s life science innovations compared to the amount patented in other states, Sloca said, but it did indicate that many of the patents don’t result in production within the state.

“If you’re going to have a patent that comes out of Missouri, you should hopefully have a way to keep or attract industries that will use that patent to Missouri, and that’s what we’re working on now,” Sloca said.

Creating an environment where companies can take advantage of Missouri’s knowledge base is a goal of the department, he said.

“Missouri’s strength lies in its highly trained, highly skilled work force and its institutions of learning where some of our best and brightest are creating and innovating as we speak,” Steinhoff said. “We are in a strong position to create the jobs of the future right here in Missouri.”

Missouri’s environment is very healthy for the expansion of life sciences, Sloca said.

Gov. Matt Blunt’s signature on the Missouri Quality Jobs Act is one of the changes Sloca sees as improving the state’s marketability to companies.

“Missouri’s always been a good place to do business, but with the changes under way now, we believe Missouri is a great place to do business,” Sloca said. “We believe that’s going to attract high-tech life science industries.”