The Life Sciences: THE sector of excellence of the Lyon urban area

Portal: Lyonbiopole, recognised as a competitiveness cluster in 2005, is a world centre of excellence for diagnostics and vaccines. It has positioned itself as a "factory" for collaborative projects which will develop a health shield against human and animal infectious diseases as well cancer.
Lyonbiopole has been working with scientists, clinics and regional manufacturers (large groups, SMEs and start-ups) in order to set up multi-partner R&D projects aimed at of offering innovative diagnostic, preventative and therapeutic approaches and systems for administering them in order to make medicine more reactive and personalised.
Lyonbiopole also supports the development of small and medium sized companies (R&D, international, Business Development, financing etc.).

Sector leaders: Sanofi Pasteur: World No. 1 in human vaccine, Merial: World No. 1 in veterinary products, bioMérieux: World No. 1 in bacteriological diagnostics.

International research centres: WHO centre for communicable disease surveillance and response systems and a CERVI.

Large establishment: Jean Mérieux P4 laboratory.

A specialised advanced research network (RTRA): Innovation in Infectology (FINOVI), approved in 2006.

Portal: the CLARA (Lyon Auvergne Rhône-Alpes cancer hub), centralises and exploits the scientific, clinical and industrial oncology strengths of the Lyon Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region and uses them in research and the manufacture of innovative treatments for patients.

The CLARA has developed along 3 specialist lines of enquiry: (I) Tumour escape, cellular plasticity and targeted therapy, (II) Infections and Cancer, (III) Nanotechnologies, imaging and cancer and there are 3 emerging lines of enquiry: (A) Evaluation, perception of risks and prevention of cancer, (B) Environment, nutrition and cancer and (C) Hadron therapy and cancer. The Testing a Theory programme, which provides funding during the phase before an idea becomes an R&D project that is financed by an innovative business, was created in Lyon thanks to financial support from Greater Lyon.

Hospitals which specialise in cancer: The Léon Bérard regional centre for the fight against cancer, Lyon University hospitals (CHU) with the Haemato-oncology unit in Lyon Sud and the paediatric Haemato Oncology Institute.

International research centres: the CIRC (International Centre for Cancer Research), the CRCL (Lyon Cancer Research Centre).

A specialised research and care network working on particular themes (RTRS): " Synergie Lyon Cancer ", approved early 2007.

The Rhône-Alpes region is one of the rare centres in Europe to cover all neuroscience and cognitive science fields with exceptional capacity in neuroimaging for human or animal use clinically or in research.

Portal:  Specialist research and care network (RTRS) Neurodis, " neurological disability " was approved in 2007. It gathers together researchers and clinicians with international reputations working towards the same medical and scientific objective. This group is to over 800 researchers from Inserm and the CNRS, academics, clinicians, engineers and technicians, doctoral and post doctoral students.

A hospital, unique in Europe, which deals with neurological disorders: The Pierre Wertheimer neurological and neurosurgical hospital of Lyon.

Applied and fundamental research centres: The Lyon centre for neuroscience research (CRNL) and the Institute of cognitive science (ISC).

Specialised technological platforms: A complete multimodal imaging platform, the CERMEP; a platform for the collection of biological samples together with clinical data: NeuroBioTec.

IDEE project for the creation of an Institute specialising in epilepsy, in Lyon (research, care, patients group, manufacturers).

The region has over 300 businesses active in the area of medical technology. This industrial might is a consequence of the cross-fertilisation between the major industrial areas in the Rhône-Alpes region: plastics/health, nanotechnology/health, micromechanics/health, microelectronics/health, optics/health.

Portal: The I-Care (Health Technology Rhône-Alpes Cluster) network aims to support regional businesses in order to put technology and innovation at the disposal of health and health-care and contribute to medical advances. This initiative is addressed to all those in the health technology value chain in the Rhône-Alpes region sub-contractors, producers and distributors, universities, research centres, local authorities, groups, etc.