Hartford Business Journal

www.HartfordBusiness.com • February 5, 2018 • Hartford Business Journal 11 FOCUS The purpose of Connecticut Chil- dren's esophageal tissue engineering work is to take cells from the baby, grow those cells in the lab, put those cells on the Biostage scaffold and eventually transplant the cells and scaffold back into the baby so they have their own esophagus that was grown in a dish but able to be implanted back to them. Being able to create a tube to bridge the gap in the esophagus that is personalized to the baby would be very innovative and helpful to prevent some of the complications they would otherwise have during their life. Personalized medicine is of the utmost importance because then you don't need anti-rejection medications. Not only that, but tailoring a potential cure not only for the size of the baby's specific gap, but also with cells that are specific to the baby, would be very novel and very exciting. Q. Is this the first time Connecticut Children's has invested in an outside bioscience company? Are such outside investments going to become part of the hospital's long-term strategy? Research is a part of Connecticut Children's mission and we continue to look for innovative ways to create partnerships to advance our mis- sion. We co-develop and support companies such as Biostage that are working on solutions that improve the health of children. Connecticut Children's will be developing a Connecticut Children's Center for Innovation, which will establish a formal platform and infrastructure for co-development and clinical validation of innovative products and services that benefit kids in Connecticut and around the world. The Center for Innovation will provide external companies and entrepreneurs/startups with a seam- less bridge to work with Connecticut Children's to co-develop and commer- cialize innovations that have market potential, enabling Connecticut Chil- dren's to reinvest in our mission. Currently, the Center for Innova- tion is in the development phase. NEOPERL, Inc., 171 Mattatuck Heights Rd, Waterbury, CT 06705 | 10,000 sq. ft. Quality Renovations by Borghesi Building 2155 East Main Street • Torrington, Connecticut 06790 www.borghesibuilding.com © 2011 BlueScope Buildings North America, Inc. All rights reserved. Butler Manufacturing™ is a division of BlueScope Buildings North America, Inc. Contact us at 860-482-7613 or visit us on the web. DATA SCIENTIST needed to apply stat/data mining techniques to imprv rating determinations. Seek/Initiate rsrch topics/hypoth to increase innovation for products/methods utilized through data science techniques. Duties: consult w/stakeholders; desgn exprmnts to test systm ops; analyze results; write/validate algorithms to find/ analyze patterns in high-dimtnl datasets & imprv reslts; prepare/ present findings/recomnd to mgmnt; specify biz reqrmnts for IT projects planned; monitor perfmnc of stat models used & make fixes/ upgrds; train sub engineer/actuarial staff. Work from home allowed 1 day per wk. Position reqs Bachelor's deg in Comp Sci [forgn deg equiv accepted] + 5 yrs progressive exp analyzing indemnity-rltd decision spprt systms, conducting GAP analyses, & dvlpng/implmntng indemnification data prgrms using statistical data analysis & predctve modeling for ID of efficiencies in ops strategies. Send resume to Attn: HR, Insurity Inc., 170 Huyshope Av, Hartford, CT 06106 DATA SCIENTIST needed to apply stat/data mining techniques to imprv rating determinations. Seek/Initiate rsrch topics/hypoth to increase innovation for products/methods utilized through data science techniques. Duties: consult w/stakeholders; desgn exprmnts to test systm ops; analyze results; write/validate algorithms to find/ analyze patterns in high-dimtnl datasets & imprv reslts; prepare/ present findings/recomnd to mgmnt; specify biz reqrmnts for IT projects planned; monitor perfmnc of stat models used & make fixes/ upgrds; train sub engineer/actuarial staff. Work from home allowed 1 day per wk. Position reqs Master's deg in Comp Sci, MIS or Biz Admin [forgn deg equiv accepted] + 2 yrs exp analyzing indemnity- rltd decision spprt systms & dvlpng/implmntng indemnification biz reqrmnts/testing prgrms using traceability matrixes, statistical data analysis & predctve modeling for ID of efficiencies. Send resume to Attn: HR, Insurity Inc., 170 Huyshope Av, Hartford, CT 06106 try Association's Bioscience Growth Council, said the state's long-term fiscal stability is a real challenge for the bioscience sector. He points out that the two main drivers of company creation in bioscience are the quality and quantity of academic research and private venture capital. "We have the research, but the pri- vate investment is what we [largely] lack," Pescatello said, noting that the standard cost to bring a drug to mar- ket is more than $2.5 billion, a price tag that requires investment beyond public funding. "Private investors in this industry are very active; they're in the labs, they're on the management boards," Pescatello said. "But [if they're con- sidering investing in Connecticut] they're looking at the next 15 years and given the fiscal state we're in, there's going to be a lot of pressure to raise taxes and reduce services and there may not be many resources left over as incentives for life sciences." Hopeful future Despite Connecticut's fiscal chal- lenges, Hocevar sees positive trends for the bioscience sector in the state. "We need to highlight and cel- ebrate the daily accomplishments of our members," she said, noting there are more than 1,200 clinical trials ongoing in the state. And member- ship in her association — heavily comprised of early stage companies — has more than doubled in the past few years. Driving value for her members — and creating greater connections and communication across the bioscience landscape in the state — are Hoce- var's primary focuses. She said a recent member survey found that attracting and retaining talent are top priorities. That's critically important, Pescatel- lo said, in an industry where compa- nies are born and die constantly. "Most [bioscience] research proj- ects don't make it [as businesses]," he said. "But if the [sector] cluster is big enough, people know that if a project or venture doesn't work out, there's an- other opportunity around the corner." To support that demand, BioCT has created a central hub for employers and job-seekers in the industry. "It not only helps employers find talent, but also supports that talent with resourc- es for resume writing, job interviews, career fairs, internship and volunteer opportunities," Hocevar said. Both Hocevar and Pescatello plan to have their respective organiza- tions work more closely together so bioscience companies speak with a more unified voice to state policy- makers. In March, for instance, BioCT will be hosting a Connecticut biosci- ence policy day at the state Capitol, featuring industry CEOs and start- ups, to educate legislators about the sector's successes and struggles. Hocevar said she would like to see more state funding available to companies after they mature out of the incubator stage. "The state needs to create tax incentives and programs to work with companies while their growing to entice them to stay," she said. For now, Hocevar is hoping her organization's new branding, new approaches and new collaborations send a message that when it comes to bioscience, Connecticut is open for business.

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