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Critical Mass

In yesterday's post, "Arcane Issues, Big Stakes,"   I laid out the case how vital it is for the future prosperity of the Richmond region to ensure a credible resolution to the controversy over Virginia Commonwealth University 's research contracts with Philip Morris USA . The flap comes at a time when the region, thanks to the leadership of the Virginia Biotechnology Research Park , is on the verge of breaking into the life-sciences big leagues.

In an article published earlier this week on Greater Richmond BioSynthesis , "Critical Mass," I describe how Donna Edmonds , a successful biotech entrepreneur, has created a unique program to help foreign companies commercialize technologies in the United States medical marketplace.

Edmonds has pulled together a remarkable set of assets for the Virginia Biosciences Commercialization Center , which is a high-powered scientific advisory board drawing upon top scientific talent nationally, the research capabilities of VCU's medical school, the office space of the Biotech Park, senior-level participation of two of the nation's leading medical supply distribution companies – Owens & Minor , and McKesson Surgical – to advise on markets and distribution channels for medical devices, as well as a medical team to help foreign companies through the complex process of conducting clinical trials. She is also working on raising a locally capitalized venture fund.

This initiative has received commitments from eight Israeli companies that have developed technologies with extraordinary potential to use the BioTech Park as their base for U.S. operations. Biotech Park executives see the Israelis as a possible template to recruit other fledgling foreign companies to Richmond.

Although this initiative has received very little publicity, I can say, with the benefit of 20 years covering business and economic development issues in Richmond, that this may be the single-most transformative economic development initiative that the Richmond region has seen. This is an opportunity we cannot afford to squander by prolonging needless controversy over the propriety of $300,000 in Philip Morris research contracts. Fairly or unfairly, that controversy is damaging the reputation of VCU and the Richmond regionally nationally, and it needs to be settled in a transparent and credible manner.

Here's the lead-in to the article in BioSynthesis :

Virtual Ports Ltd., a start-up company in Misgav, Israel, is developing technology that promoters hope will revolutionize the practice of endoscopic surgery. Following the lead of orthopedic surgeons who use minimally invasive tools to reconstruct knee and shoulder joints, Virtual Ports is adding to the toolkit that surgeons can employ when operating inside a patient's chest or abdomen.

Dr. Ken Zaslav knows a thing or two about orthopedic surgery: He founded the Sports Medicine Center at the Advanced Orthopedic Centers in Richmond. He believes that endoscopic surgery is following the same path toward less invasive techniques that orthroscopy began a decade ago, and Virtual Ports has created two surgical tools that will propel the process forward, he told a gathering of the Richmond Venture Forum earlier this month.

When surgeons insert endoscopic blades inside the body, they can get fogged up, Zaslav explained. Surgeons have to pull the scope out of the body, clean it and reinsert it 16 times on average during an operation -- a process that increases the length of the surgery and raises the risk of infection. Virtual Ports has invented a tool anchored in the cavity, EndoClear, that allows the surgeon to wipe the lens clean without retracting the scope. Another device, EndoGrab, makes it easier to move pesky intestines and other organs out of the surgeon's way, saving the expense of an assistant and the trauma of a second incision for a second scope.

"Virtual Ports has a pipeline of tools that will revolutionize surgery," says Zaslav, who is helping the Israelis commercialize their technology in the United States. The new tools will make many surgeries less expensive, speed patient recovery times and improve medical outcomes.

That's great news by any measure. For the Richmond life sciences community, the story gets even better. Virtual Ports is one of eight Israeli companies that has agreed to launch its United States operations from the Virginia Biotech Research Park in downtown Richmond. The hope is that, in time, the company's nominal presence could grow into a full-fledged U.S. headquarters that oversees clinical trials, regulatory approvals and the set-up of distribution channels. More .