News

Biotechnology

Barcelona and Biocat create the brand Barcelona Biotech

On Dec. 2, the city of Barcelona and the public organization Biocat signed an agreement to promote biotechnology under the brand Barcelona Biotech. The agreement aims to promote Barcelona as prominent location for activities in this sector.

STAFF | DECEMBER 7TH, 2010

The First Deputy Mayor of Barcelona, Jordi William Carnes, and the President of the Executive Committee of Biocat, Manel Balcells, signed on Dec. 2 a cooperation agreement creating the new brand Barcelona Biotech.

Through this agreement, Biotech Barcelona will coordinate actions for the promotion and projection of the Catalan capital as an attractive and dynamic location for the development of businesses in the biotechnology, biomedicine and medical technology sectors.

The agreement will also serve to attract foreign companies and investment in the bio sector
"This agreement represents a great opportunity for Barcelona to stand out as a leader in the biotechnology sector and to continue to attract talent and investment to the city," Carnes said.

The agreement will also serve to attract foreign companies and investment in the bio sector, in addition to promoting awareness and improving the perception of Catalan society towards biotechnology, biomedicine and medical technology, said its founders.

The new brand "will facilitate the projection of Barcelona as an attractive and dynamic geographical setting for the field of biotechnology, biomedicine and medical technologies, both nationally and internationally," Balcells said.

Both the Barcelona town hall and Biocat will promote the city through joint participation in forums, conferences and trade shows considered strategic for the projection of the new brand Barcelona Biotech. They agreed to help to the city to host events highlighted in the international arena in this sector.

VCN Biosciences, winner of the BioEmprenedorXXI Award

The company VCN Biosciences, a virotherapy group spun off from the Catalan Institute of Oncology, has been named the winner of the third edition of BioEmprenedorXXI Award, which recognizes the best plan for creating an innovative company in the field of the life sciences.

This program, promoted by Biocat, along with Barcelona Activa, La Caixa, the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Genome Spain, aims to provide participants with the creation of their companies through a series of training activities and analysis of the feasibility of their business plans.

VCN Biosciences, a company promoted by Dr. Manel Cascallo, Dr. Ramon Alemany and Dr. Gabriel Capellà, develops new biotechnology drugs with high potency and selectivity to treat cancer through the technology offered by oncolytic adenovirus. The oncolytic virus multiplies in selected tumor cells, leading to their death at the same time.

Subjects of the article