“Like two sides of the same coin, but with two different meanings and purposes; So different, yet so similar in profound ways”.
This implies that two things may actually have similar characteristics but are not the same nor perform like functions, even though there may be areas they overlap in functions.
The infusion of technology to medicine has continued to be on an upward rise, with exponential development in integrating the digital world with the medical one growing on various frontiers.
In all these, we get confused with the terms, Biotech and Pharma, they have similarities but what is the difference?
Biotech here is the short form of biotechnology, Pharma is the short form of Pharmaceutical.
The two terms both refer to the production of medicines for human and animal use and in many cases, we have been availed of the ‘biopharma’ coinage but there is a difference.
Biotechnology is the unit of technology that uses biological systems like a living organism or its associated parts to develop and create different products, while Pharmacy is the clinical health science charged with the discovery, production, disposal, safe and effective use, and control of medications and drugs.
In simpler terms, biotechnology companies produce medicines from living organisms while pharmaceutical companies produce medications strictly induced from chemical properties.
It could be seen above that both terms have medical functionalities, with the difference in concept extending to a much extensive and sophisticated level that would form the basis of shaping the current world scientific path.
Let’s take a look at the core distinctions between biotechnology and pharmaceutical?
Biotech vs Pharma
Biotechnology that was just the simple use of living organisms and things to develop things has expanded and continued to expand to various science disciplines like molecular biology, biochemistry genomics, recombinant gene techniques, applied immunology, and the development of pharmaceutical therapies and diagnostic tests.
It has in modern days been mainly restricted for use in daily products like alcoholic beverages, laundry detergent, and plastic created products, as it sets the main pillar for the biotech sector, one of the leading tech industries in this era.
Pharmaceutical Companies in contrast had their work mostly relying on research, development, and market medicine that is strictly developed from produced chemical sources. Many pharmaceutical companies have etched their name in the industry in the production of medicine.
Pharmaceutical products make take time and years of development before they are released to the market; as they have to go through research and development (R&D) stages, while they wait for approval from the regulatory body, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
With the analysis above, the fundamental variation between biotech and pharma is in the production of the product, as the former relies on living organisms while the latter depends on synthetisation of artificial sources.
It can hence be deduced that the summary distinction on the concepts, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical lies in the framework that originates the product.
The biotech industry reached towering horizons in the evolvement of humanity with the use of living organisms to create products that solve problems, for instance, identifying and sourcing DNA. The associated technological spring brought about pest-resistant crops, developed biofuels such as ethanol, and delivered gene cloning.
Many pharmaceutical companies in a bid to have the ‘biopharma’ leverage, have in the last couple of years initiated moves to acquire biotech firms, notable among them is Johnson & Johnson’s $6.5 billion acquisition of biotech group Momenta Pharmaceuticals last year.
This move is seen by the medical industry analysts as setting the stage for an alignment and subsequent merger between both industries to create what is now known as biotech pharmaceuticals.
With the support of intensively developed bioprocess technology, the present-day ‘Biopharma’ energy is poised to thrive in the coming years.
The core of medical biotechnology stems from Bioprocess, a very vital element of biotechnology that deals with the various procedures that integrate all living matter or any of its elements together with nutrients to produce specialty chemicals, reagents, and biotherapeutics.
Biotechnology medicine has largely grown in synchronization with the digital world. With the use of living cells and materials to conduct research and studies, pharmaceutical and diagnosing products are created. Biomedicine helped cure and prevent diseases, such as the Ebola vaccine and mapping human DNA, marking a giant leap in the medical field.
According to data released by Grand View Research, the biotech market valued at $752 billion in 2020 is predicted to rise at a compound rate (CAGR) of 15.83 percent from 2021 to 2028, with the upward spike not be unconnected with government initiatives that are majorly driven by greater investments and the growing demand for personalized healthcare and orphan drugs.
A future merger between the biotech and pharma industry in the endlessly changing and evolving field of medicine will be for the greater good of the populace, with researchers and scientists not losing sleep to enhance medical progress in synchronization with technology.
Ayoola Faseyi, an Abuja based Journalist with interest in Technology and Politics. He is a versatile writer with articles in many renowned News Journals.He is the Co-Founder of media brand, The Vent Republic.
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