What is Life Science?
For the newest installment of our “understanding industry terms” series, we define life sciences, discuss the impacts of the industry, and look forward to the future of life sciences.
Defining Life Science
Defined by Merriam-Webster as “a branch of science that deals with living organisms and life processes”, life science refers to a wide range of biological disciplines, leading it to sometimes be referred to as biological sciences. Its research into living organisms mainly focuses on relationships between organisms, including their relationship with their environment, and each other. The goal of life sciences is to use this research to create solutions that can improve human quality of life.
Major trends in life sciences that are expected to have the greatest impact on the industry's value are increased quality and usage of artificial intelligence (AI), mergers and acquisitions, advances in biotechnology, and increased investor confidence leading to additional IPO activity.
What Industries are Encompassed in Life Science?
As mentioned above, life sciences mainly encompass biological industries that utilize living organisms. This means there is an extensive list of industries that fall under the life sciences umbrella. Many consider anatomy, botany, physiology, microbiology, genetics, and zoology to be some of the core branches of life sciences, but there are many other commonly referenced areas of study, including biotechnology, biopharmaceuticals, cell biology, and many more.
Major Impacts of Life Science
At a high level, life sciences are responsible for granting us an understanding of the fundamental building blocks of human life through cells, genetics, DNA, and more.
Understanding the many disciplines within life sciences grants us invaluable insights into illnesses and diseases, which allows us to develop treatments and even cures. One relevant example of the impact of life sciences is the development of the COVID-19 vaccination by Moderna, Pfizer, and Johnson & Johnson. By learning more about the illness and discovering a way to combat it at a large scale, these organizations, through life sciences, were able to help provide a solution to the global pandemic.
This can of course be applied to many other illnesses and diseases plaguing individuals worldwide. It should also be acknowledged that, as life sciences encompasses all living organisms, it can also be utilized to improve and protect the quality of life of many animal species, as seen in the life sciences discipline of zoology.
One major impact of life sciences that may be overlooked is the increase in employment opportunities. According to CNA, life science employment opportunities are outpacing overall employment, growing at an annual rate of 6.6% within the last ten years, compared to the overall employment annual average of 1.2%.
The Future of Life Science
We have previously discussed the potential effects of artificial intelligence (AI) in the science world, and life sciences is no exception. The incorporation of artificial intelligence, especially in the biotechnology and biopharmaceutical fields, has tremendous potential for improving the current pharmaceutical treatments on the market, as well as developing new treatments for previously untreatable diseases.
In Deloitte’s 2024 Global Life Sciences Sector Outlook, they discuss how AI will likely lead to a faster pipeline of research & discovery to market, ultimately getting treatments to the patients who need them. This will also be affected by the predicted increase in merger and acquisition activity that is expected between biopharma, biotech, research, and AI companies in the coming years.
Learn More About Relevant Industry Terminology
To continue expanding your understanding of the life sciences industry and beyond, visit our Industry Insights blog page. There, you will find a catalog of relevant industry topics explained, including “Biotech vs Biopharma”, “What is Cell & Gene Therapy?”, “What is Fill-Finish”, and many more.
For resources on life sciences that are appropriate for a variety of learning levels, visit the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History Life Sciences Resources catalog.
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About HPNE
As the industry needs grow, High Purity New England, Inc. continues to supply the biopharmaceutical industry with a range of innovative products, from drug discovery and development to fill-finish, including their flagship product, custom single-use assemblies, as well as pumps, sensors, bioreactor systems, storage and handling solutions and other single-use solutions. Along with their own manufactured products for the global market, they are also a distributor for more than 18 brands in North America.
