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While the 20th century had seen the ubiquitous hand of physics in every invention worth its name, the 21st century would strike a sharp contrast with biological sciences coming to the fore, said David Triggle, professor at the University of Buffalo.
Biological research would lead to far-reaching discoveries, and areas like molecular biology and genomics would play a significant role as regards healthcare, disease prevention and cure, Triggle said in his reflections on "Pharmaceuticals, science, public policy and partnerships" at a luncheon session in the Confederation of Indian Industry's Partnership Summit in Hyderabad.
In an era to be marked by the use of gene therapy, stem cell therapy and artificial organs, public policies pursued by governments would tell upon the prosperity of its people and enterprises, the professor explained.
He said the major part of spending on drug research in developed countries was devoted to not-so-serious diseases like Type-II diabetes, hyper tension and compulsive shopping, while the diseases afflicting a larger section of people across the globe were not cared for. There was need for serious planning by developing countries to prop up drug research, he said.
Triggle rued that 90 per cent of the global R&D spend was on diseases suffered by 10 per cent of the people, which implied only 10 per cent of the resources attended to the ill-health of 90 per cent of the masses. Ill-health caused poverty and not vice versa, he added.
Earlier, Satish Reddy, managing director of Dr Reddy's Laboratories, who chaired the session, said there was an immediate need to address the lack of good clinical practices, world class pharma education, and the regulatory environment and insurance coverage in the country.
Clearing those hurdles would pave the way for a robust growth of the industry which, as per McKinsey, had $10-13 billion investment opportunities, he said.
Reddy also called for attention to the spiralling of drug prices in the product patent regime.