SAN DIEGO — The 2017 Bio International Convention officially kicked off in San Diego, California, on Monday, bringing together thousands of biotech professionals from around the world to exchange knowledge and engage in dialogue over new industry trends and issues.

In its 24th year, the four-day conference hosted annually by the Biotechnology Innovation Organization is considered one of the world’s biggest biotech and pharmaceutical industry events.

This year’s edition, themed “Breakthrough,” is taking place in San Diego, home to a booming biotechnology cluster led by world-renowned scientific institutions including the Scripps Research Institute, the Salk Institute for Biological Studies and the University of California San Diego. The world’s biggest genomic sequencing company Illumina and numerous other biotech ventures are also based in San Diego. 

Some 1,800 exhibitors and 16,000 participants from 76 countries are attending the event this year to showcase their research and development findings, market their products and seek new business opportunities, according to BIO. 

A series of conferences and panel sessions will begin from Monday while the exhibition space will be open from Tuesday to Thursday. Discussions will touch on topics ranging from the impact of artificial intelligence on the biopharma value chain to raising the affordability of new drugs and this year’s outlook for major mergers and acquisitions in the biotech industry.

Eyeing new opportunities, South Korean biopharma companies with business interests in the US and the global market have set up exhibition booths, including contract drug manufacturer Samsung BioLogics, biosimilar developer Celltrion and biopharma company Kolon Life Science.

Samsung BioLogics said that it will work to “discover and connect with new potential clients as well as discuss new potential business opportunities with the world’s biggest biopharma companies through the conference.”

In particular, the biologic drug manufacturer has once again brought its flagship virtual reality headsets that offer life-like tours of Samsung BioLogics’ production plants in Songdo, allowing those abroad to gain a taste of the firm’s facilities on the other side of the world in Korea, it said.

Celltrion will focus on marketing its Remicade-referencing biosimilar currently sold in the US via its partner Pfizer, while Kolon Life Science will zero in on its upcoming drug Inovossa, set to become the world’s first cell-mediated gene therapy for osteoarthritis.

In addition, Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization and the state-funded Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency have also set up a “Korea” pavilion showcasing 14 Korean biotech firms including Huons Global and DM Bio.

This year in particular, government officials from Korea and the US are slated to take part in a closed roundtable discussion to discuss each country’s biotech advances and forge new ties on Thursday. Korea will also attend a two-day “global innovation hub program” that brings key US government officials with countries focused on biotech innovation.

By Sohn Ji-young / Korea Herald Correspondent (jys@heraldcorp.com)