msp Tenant Case Study: ProteinTechThe ProteinTech story began in 2001 with Dr Jianxun Li, a Tenured Associate Professor at the University of Illinois, Chicago. Having been involved in a number of studies over 15 years, including funded research for National Institute of Health, the American Heart Association, the Cancer Research Institute, Dr Li understood the importance of having a reliable supplier of antibodies when carrying out research. Aware of this need, Dr Li decided to set up his own company, ProteinTech Group Inc, in 2002 to develop and manufacture a wide spectrum of antibodies against all human proteins. His aim was to become a silent partner for companies and academic institutions involved in the bioresearch sector by providing every possible antibody researchers could need at a reasonable cost.Dr Li began his enterprise with an office in the Chicago Technology Park supplemented by a laboratory in his home city of Wuhan in China. Antibodies, both monoclonal and polyclonal, are developed and produced, as are custom-made antibodies, produced to order from clone DNA. The company are also in the R&D stage of developing antibody chips, a collection of thousands of antibodies arranged in assays for quick identification and quantification of known and unknown proteins in a mixture, such as blood. Antibodies act as a marker for proteins, enabling scientists to identify or target specific human proteins which are vital to their research. According to company founder Dr Li, antibody and anti-body related products are a huge and as yet unsaturated market in the research, biotech and clinical diagnostics sectors. Another growing market is areas such as the Human Proteome Initiative, a large-scale study aimed at identifying and profiling all human proteins, their structures and functions. Since its foundation in 2002 ProteinTech has quickly carved out a niche for itself in the biotechnology sector, building a reputation for quality and reliability. It is now a global enterprise with offices in China, the USA, Manchester and Japan. ProteinTech first came to Manchester via the SinoVentures Project, a partnership between Manchester City Council, MIDAS (Manchester's Inward Investment Agency) and Manchester Science Park Ltd (msp), supported by the Northwest Regional Development Agency. Under the scheme the City Council, MIDAS and msp work together to offer business support to Chinese high tech companies who wish to establish a presence in the UK. SinoVentures proved a perfect way for ProteinTech to successfully test the European market with a soft landing in the city and, in May 2006, the company became a permanent tenant at msp. From their European HQ in msp's Kilburn House ProteinTech supply antibodies to many of the UK's leading universities, including Cambridge, Oxford, York, and, of course, the University of Manchester. They also sell to hundreds of universities and biotechnology companies across Europe. However, despite the success so far, the company are not resting on their laurels but are continually looking for new ways to grow and, with ambitious entrepreneur Dr Li at the helm, ProteinTech is definitely a firm to watch for the future. |
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