When national leaders gathered in Washington, D.C., to chart the future of biotechnology in the United States, East Tennessee State University was at the table.   

 Eric Jorgenson, vice president of biomanufacturing at the ETSU Research Corporation, joined a powerhouse lineup of scientists, government officials, policy leaders and investors at the AI+ Biotechnology Summit in April.   

The event marked the release of the final report from the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology, a congressionally mandated group tasked with strengthening America’s global competitiveness in the biotech sector.   

“For ETSU to have a voice in that conversation speaks volumes about the growing national relevance of the university’s work in biomanufacturing and applied research,” said David A. Golden, chief executive officer of the ETSU Research Corporation. “Eric Jorgenson’s participation at the summit offered an opportunity to share how ETSU is helping lead biotech innovation in rural regions and beyond — including efforts to accelerate workforce development, expand lab access and scale-up capabilities and build industry partnerships that can transform sustainable manufacturing methods and the regional economy.”  

 It’s the kind of national visibility that aligns with the ETSU Research Corporation’s mission to position the university and the region as a hub for discovery and development.  

Jorgenson offered his take on the experience, the biotech breakthroughs on the horizon and how ETSU can continue to shape the future of biomanufacturing.   

Q: You were in the room with some of the nation’s top biotech and policy leaders. What were the biggest takeaways from those conversations? 

A: First, the technology I saw on display was mind-blowing. I saw bio-based structural tiles that are strong, lightweight, and incredibly effective at protecting astronauts from the intense radiation in space. I saw bio-based insulation that has superior fire-resistant properties to incumbent materials. I saw biologically-enriched self-healing concrete that is used to quickly build landing zones in forward operating bases – it is lighter to transport, cures faster, and has a simpler supply chain than normal concrete. I saw biosensors that could detect and identify pathogens in airline sewage with incredible specificity and sensitivity, allowing us to easily monitor the ebb and flow of viruses throughout our transportation chains. I saw a bio-mining method to recover toxic heavy metals out of runoff, with a built-in color-changing indicator that it was working as intended. This is not science fiction. These are working prototypes that are being deployed in the field. 

 As fascinating as the biomanufacturing applications were, the geopolitical dynamics were quite serious. The report compiled by the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology over the last several years was a sobering read, and at the summit in D.C., there was a lingering sense of urgency in the air. The United States has long been the global leader in biotechnology, and that is no longer true. For all the innovation on display at the summit, our lead in this sector has evaporated and we are starting to lag behind our international peers and competitors in investment, capability, capacity, strategy and innovation. It’s a bad spot for our nation to be in. The NSCEB is a bipartisan effort, but it remains to be seen how far that will carry the message, and much of the discussion was about how to effectively reach policymakers. It’s not too late yet, but the situation is dire and if the U.S. fails to act, we may never recover our leadership in biotechnology. The biggest takeaway from this summit, and from the NSCEB report, is that we have time to act but no time to wait. 

 Let’s just say my week in D.C. made me very grateful to call Jonesborough my home. 

Q: How does ETSU – and Appalachia – fit into the national conversation about biotechnology and emerging technologies? 

A: Currently, there are hubs of biotechnology around the U.S. in areas like Cambridge, Berkeley, Research Triangle Park – it’s not enough. The jump from high-science research labs to boots-on-the-ground factories is a hard one to make. Rural America needs to step up and make it happen. Appalachia is not the first place some might think of being a good fit for traditional biotech, but we have a long history of fermentation, distillation and chemical manufacturing operations – in practice, it’s very similar. We already have the skillset, and technological breakthroughs in next-generation feedstocks are opening opportunities for Appalachia to sustainably leverage our existing resources and industrial base to be a significant player in this space. At the highest levels of leadership, our university has recognized these patterns early and made this effort a strategic priority for ETSU. 

Q: What message did you share in Washington about the role regional universities like ETSU can play in biotech innovation? 

A: In short – we recognize the core issues and we are doing something about them. The ETSU Research Corporation has been working behind the scenes to connect and activate projects in education and workforce development (which have long lead times) as well as developing assets for startups and entrepreneurs to help pull their innovations out of the lab and make something real in the world. We are researching low-cost feedstocks throughout our region as well, to help tip the scales towards favorable economics, which has historically kept biomanufacturing at a disadvantage to petrochemicals. We’ve been able to leverage a relatively small investment into an outsized impact for our region, and the momentum continues to build. The ETSU Research Corporation is punching well above its weight class – it was noticed. 

Q: What makes ETSU’s approach to biomanufacturing unique or especially promising? 

A: The ETSU Research Corporation has a pretty unique vision and strategy. To a certain extent, I think it is the logical extension of a fundamentally gritty mindset – use whatever you have and push as hard as you can, for as long as you can, to make the biggest positive impact you can – but what this looks like in practice is a growing network of schools, training programs, small businesses, and university assets all tailored to the unique traits and resources of our region. This is exactly how you lay the foundation for a fully integrated regional bioeconomy with a built-in competitive advantage that cannot be easily replicated elsewhere. Our region of Appalachia has the potential to be a significant bioindustrial manufacturing hub for the U.S., and allows us to compete in the emerging global markets for sustainable biomanufacturing. At the end of the day, our work is about setting up our region for long-term prosperity. 

Q: What’s next? How does ETSU build on this momentum in the months ahead? 

A: It’s hard to drive change, and it’s even harder to be the first one to push for it in a certain area. But that’s exactly the ETSU Research Corporation’s core function. We have lined up some incredible opportunities for the university, including a Department of Defense manufacturing research contract, an Appalachian Regional Commission economic development project, a BioMADE workforce development project, and a sizeable investment from the State of Tennessee to re-activate an idle research and development lab complex in Kingsport for this purpose. None of this would have been possible without vision, strategy, and sustained effort over time by the Research Corporation and ETSU’s senior leadership – but this is no time to celebrate. We’re still in the first leg of this race. We can win it, but we – collectively, across all functions of the university – need to move with speed and intent, communicate effectively, act decisively and execute well. I’ve built these types of facilities before, and I know how heavy the task in front of us is. It’s no surprise that universities don’t often do things like this as part of day-to-day operations, and this effort will be hard for ETSU. But then, doing good things that haven’t been done before is the whole point of innovation, isn’t it?

For ETSU to have a voice in that conversation speaks volumes about the growing national relevance of the university’s work in biomanufacturing and applied research.

David A. Golden

 


 

East Tennessee State University was founded in 1911 with a singular mission: to improve the quality of life for people in the region and beyond. Through its world-class health sciences programs and interprofessional approach to health care education, ETSU is a highly respected leader in rural health research and practices. The university also boasts nationally ranked programs in the arts, technology, computing, and media studies. ETSU serves approximately 14,000 students each year and is ranked among the top 10 percent of colleges in the nation for students graduating with the least amount of debt.

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