Briefs

As the gap closes between biotechnology and computing, separate industries such as pharmaceutical labs and high-tech firms could come together into hybrid mergers. Some 140 alliances between biotech and IT companies currently exist, with particular emphasis on the field of proteomics; this field, covering interactions between genes, proteins, and disease, requires a vast amount of computing power. Other promising areas for IT companies to invest in include bioinformatics and gene chips or microarrays. IBM anticipates that annual revenues from the IT market for life sciences will total $30 billion by 2004. "As biology and medicine migrate to increasingly information-based disciplines, we will have new players entering the arena, including computing and telecommunications companies," predicts Health Technology Networks director George Poste.

A hot area for IT companies is the bioinformatics space -- firms which specialise in developing software tools and technology platforms specifically for the drug industry. IBM's tie-up with Lion Bioscience is designed to offer AG just these biocomputing tools to drugmakers.

Another rich area for cooperation is gene chips or microarrays, a business of growing interest to semiconductor manufacturers who may be able to use excess capacity available in the microprocessor industry to feed a growing market for the diagnostic devices.

Full article here http://www.siliconindia.com/tech/tech_pgtwo.asp?newsno=12623&newscat=Analysis&source=Reuters