Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM| JANUARY 9, 2023 5 George Weinstock (left), General Biomics' founder, stands in the company's Farmington-based laboratory next to a PCR machine, which performs COVID-19 virus testing. Standing to the right is General Biomics Lab Manager Kathleen Teter. HBJ PHOTO | ROBERT STORACE Lab To Market One of Jackson Laboratory's first Farmington spinoffs aims to create predictive tests for severe newborn illnesses By Robert Storace rstorace@hartfordbusiness.com A Farmington-based bioscience startup is hoping its technol- ogy can help with the early detection of newborn illnesses, saving lives and possibly billions of dollars in spending on healthcare services. General Biomics Inc.'s goal is to apply knowledge of the microbiome (microorganisms that exist in a partic- ular environment) and its impact on illnesses that affect newborns, most notably late-onset sepsis. The company is developing pat- entable tests to predict the occur- rence of maladies prior to the start of symptoms. Specifically, the tests take a sample of an infant's gut microbes. Artificial intelligence is then used to determine if the microbes are healthy. If they are not healthy, then interventions — such as antibiotics or probiotics — are prescribed. There are about 400,000 at-risk patients in the neonatal intensive care unit and 130,000 high-risk infants in the pediatric intensive care unit in the U.S., suffering from severe illnesses that range from late-onset sepsis to serious gastrointestinal problems that mostly affect prema- ture babies. The costs attributable to these maladies are about $25 billion, according to Steve Lombardi, General Biomics' executive chairman. Lombardi said his company's data shows hospitals can save up to two-thirds of those costs and reduce mortality by 90% by predict- ing maladies prior to the onset of symptoms. "What the technology can do is allow us to quickly elucidate the microorgan- isms that are responsible for virtually any human disease," Lombardi said. "It's the next phase of human medi- cine; the impact of what we can do can be immense and it can save lives." Spinoff count General Biomics is newsworthy for more than just the science and potential impact it could have. It is also one of the first spinoffs to come out of Jackson Laboratory's Farming- ton campus. The Maine-based genomics research institute was approved for nearly $300 million in taxpayer fund- ing in 2011 to build a 185,000-square- foot research center in Farmington and grow its ranks and research. General Biomics was founded by George Weinstock, who was a professor and director of microbial genomics at Jackson Laboratory from 2010 until Jan. 4, when he retired from full-time employment to devote his attention to growing General Biomics. Since the debut of its Farmington facility in 2014, Jackson Laboratory has named two spinoffs. The other is Boundless Bio, which is developing cancer therapies. It's not clear how that number of startups would meet the expectations of state policymakers who approved Jackson Laboratory's funding more than a decade ago. A 2011 economic analysis of the Jackson Laboratory investment — performed by former Department of Economic and Community Devel- opment economist Stan McMillan — projected the nonprofit research organization would produce 2,762 direct spinoff hires by the end of 2022. The spinoffs category, according to the report, included jobs created by new startups, and jobs migrat- ing to Connecticut or expanding at existing in-state firms because of collaborations, subcontracts or a clustering effect from Jackson Labo- ratory's presence. Jackson Laboratory couldn't provide HBJ the direct number of spinoff hires it's created in the state so far. However, a 2021 economic impact report gen- erated by the research institute said it had an "indirect and induced impact" of $55.7 million that supported 691 jobs. LuAnn Ballesteros, Jackson Laborato- ry's vice president of external and government affairs, said the research organization hopes to grow its number of startups over the next decade, but creating more than 2,700 spinoff jobs by the 10-year mark "isn't realistic." "This all takes time," she said. "We are a basic research institution. It's within that process that you've got to have your basic research discoveries … made and that takes years." It's true that there are long lead times in moving scientific discoveries out of the lab. For example, it takes at least 10 years on average for a new medicine to go from initial discovery to the marketplace, with clinical trials alone taking six to seven years, according to the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, an indus- try trade group. Beyond startup activity, Balles- teros said Jackson Laboratory has had a significant economic impact on the state. It surpassed its 10-year hiring goal of at least 300 employees in Farmington in just four years in 2018. As a result, Connecticut Innovations (CI) agreed that year to forgive $165.9 million in loans to Jackson Laboratory. Today, Jackson Laboratory has 450 employees in Farmington, a 21% increase from a year ago driven by increased grant and institutional funding, Ballesteros said. LuAnn Ballesteros Steve Lombardi

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