Pharmaceutical pillar industries in the 21st Century - bio-pharmaceutical and natural medicines

    In the 21st century, science and technology, especially high-tech achievements, are the decisive factors in economic and social development. In terms of trends in technology and economic development, bio-pharmaceuticals and natural medicines are sunrise industries replacing the IT industry, occupying an important position in the world economic structure.
    In order to vigorously carry out research and development of new medicines, the state has made it clear that the bio-engineering industries should be focused on, planning to make its output value up to ten billion Yuan in 15 years, making the pharmaceutical industry a pillar industry in China.    
   In 2000, sales of bio-technological medicines exceeded 20 billion US dollars. Although their market share is not large, it is evitable for them to replace the traditional chemical medicines since they can not overcome the inherent flaws.    
    1. Over the last about 2 decades, modern bio-technology has develop rapidly. Bio-technology, microelectronics technology, new materials technology and new energy technologies will become pillars of science and technology related to national well-being and the people's livelihood in the future. As one of the typical high-tech industries, the biopharmaceutical industry will replace the IT industry. Characterized by high tech, high investment, high yield and low pollution, it is considered as the core of the world’s knowledge-based economy in the 21st century.
    2. Application of bio-technology in medicine and health
    First, it has solved the technical problems of production which can not be achieved with conventional methods in the past, or the costs of medicines especially high, and developed a large number of new effective medicines, such as insulin, interferon, interleukin-2. tissue plasminogen activating factor, tumor necrosis factor, colony stimulating factor, human growth hormone, and epidermal growth factor. These medicines can be used to control difficult and baffling diseases seriously threatening human health such as tumors, cardiovascular pulmonary vascular, genetic, immune and endocrine and avoid side effects;
    Second, it has developed a number of new equipment characterized by high sensitivity, high performance, and practical clinical diagnosis, such as in vitro diagnostic reagents, immune diagnostic kits, and found certain new treatment methods to find the pathogenesis of some incurable diseases and healing. Our monoclonal antibodies diagnostic reagents have sound market prospects;    
    Third, genetically engineered vaccines have been successfully developed, which provide a bright future to human resistance to infectious diseases and prenatal and postnatal care. Our country focuses on the development of hepatitis B gene vaccine.    
    3. Key development areas of the biopharmaceutical industry  
    When traditional chemical pharmaceuticals and traditional Chinese medicine fail to treat cancer, AIDS, coronary heart disease, anemia, osteoporosis, diabetes, heart failure, hemophilia, cystic fibrosis and rare genetic diseases, and other malignant diseases, bio-medicines show their huge market potentials and sound development prospects, which is the reason for people’s concern about them.    4. Bio-pharmaceutical status quo    
    Since “863” Program (the National High Technology Research and Development Program) was launched, China has gradually shortened the gap with advanced countries in the field of biopharmaceuticals. The new type recombinant interferon pioneered at home has achieved the capacity to be transferred abroad. Some excellent projects of multiple scientific institutions and researchers suffer from availability and remain huge untapped treasures. Some well-known biopharmaceutical enterprises have not yet entered the ranks of listed companies, failing to seize biopharmaceutical industry investment opportunities.    
5. Natural medicines status quo  
    Natural medicines are increasingly popular. The world has entered a relatively stable period of construction. Peace becomes dominated. People began to have rich material life. In the pursuit of quality of life, they all hope to enjoy longevity, which can be ensured by reducing and curing diseases. Some people with insight believe that natural medicines are the best.
6. Growing demand for natural medicines    
    Natural medicine market could achieve double-digit growth. The market of raw botanicals, herbs and their extracts is growing, with large growth potentials.
    The impact of natural medicines in Asia is expanding. Over the last 5 years, Japan has increased its Chinese herbal medicine application in prescription, with an annual growth rate of 15% and a per capita consumption of up to 7.3 US dollars. In recent years, ginseng essence, cartialgenous essence, and ganoderma tablets and other high-end tonics has been popular in Thailand, with an annual consumption of 50 million US dollars. People of the Republic of Korea are used to taking natural medicines, which originated from traditional Chinese medicine. At present, the Republic of Korea has 80 traditional Chinese medicine enterprises, accounting for 22.2% of the total.
    7. Demand for health care is driving the development of natural medicine market  
    Guide to Study on Natural Plant Medicines will be published soon. The U.S. government will have plant medicines enter clinical development in the form of preparations containing a variety of ingredients in case the quality is under control.  If their safety and efficacy are confirmed by controlled clinical trials, they can be approved by the FDA as new medicines.    
    8. Natural medicine market is promising    
    Multiple companies and scientists in the world have participated in research and development of natural medicines. “Tebonin Forte” ginkgo preparations developed in Germany has had total sales of more than 2 billion US dollars. The world natural medicine market is mainly distributed in the United States, Europe and Asia. The annual world herbal market has reached 27 billion US dollars. In the last 1 decade, natural medicines centering on plant agents has been popular in Western Countries. In 1999, the United States had sales of health products of natural medicines free from plants of 4.3 billion US dollars, and an annual growth rate of 20% to 22%.
    9. take advantage of traditional Chinese medicine production enterprises    
    Traditional Chinese medicine is a traditional Chinese industry, and one of the most competitive industries. Traditional Chinese medicine will further go global and become a new economic growth point. Traditional Chinese medicine decoction can not meet the requirements of the whole society. Some new decoctions, such as granules, bags, tablets, capsules, pills and injections have been developed. Traditional Chinese medicine injections (such as Shengmai injection, Xingnaojing injection, astragalus injection and Xuesaitong injection) and other injections used in emergency preparations have made traditional Chinese medicine well received in rescue of critical patients, making traditional Chinese medicine stand firm in medical market competition, with significant social benefits and satisfactory economic benefits.
    10. Chinese medicine focuses on the development and production of new medicines aimed at the weak aspects of Western medicine treatment for viral infections (such as hepatitis), autoimmune diseases (such as myasthenia gravis), and cancer. Reform of traditional Chinese medicine preparations and development of new medicines will resolve the weak aspects of Western medicine treatment, which will surely improve the competitiveness of traditional Chinese medicine industry, laying down a solid foundation for Chinese medicine industry to go global. Global natural medicines have become the focus of attention. Since TCM became popular in Western countries in the late 20th century, more and more people trust natural medicines. Natural pharmaceutical preparations, natural medicine raw materials and extracts marketing is becoming a new economic growth point of the world pharmaceutical market.