www.sabpa.org - The Sino-American Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Professional Association (SABPA) is set for its 3rd Annual Pacific Forum, The Opening of the Life Sciences Silk Road, to be held at UCSD on November 10, 2007 from 8:30AM - 5:30PM.

November is fast approaching and SABPA has done it again. The 3rd Annual Pacific Forum Chair, Dr. Zhu Shen, Ph.D., M.B.A. and Vice President of Business Development at the local biotech company Immusol, and her SABPA team have organized another spectacular line-up of speakers and panel discussions addressing the effects of the evolving global economy on the increasing number of collaborations between the United States and its Asian counterparts. Forum organizers have reached out and obtained sponsorships from numerous high profile local and international corporations, which further validate the industry's growing need to confront/discuss the implications of this evolving market. If the number of speakers or the amount of monies raised for the Forum is any indicator of success, then this year's Forum has already easily proven to be more successful than previous years.

"We have assembled a Dream Team of speakers: the Who's Who of Chinese life science contract research organizations (CRO) and the pioneers in cross-Pacific partnering, investment and entrepreneurship. The unprecedented level of enthusiasm and participation from our speakers, sponsors and event partners indicates the significant market demand for cross-Pacific alliances. With over 200 people involved in all aspects of the biotech/pharmaceutical industry participating in 2005 and 2006, we expect 2007 to be a sell-out event," commented Dr. Shen.

The spread of the open market economy has impacted many industries and nations worldwide, especially Asian Pacific nations, and most notably China. Furthermore, the Chinese biotech/pharmaceutical industry has seen tremendous growth over the last several years as some of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies pour billions of dollars into the nation to compete to be the leading multinational company (MNC) and to tap into the vast scientific talent pool.

"The phenomenal IPO of WuXi Pharmatech on the NYSE in August '07 signaled the coming of age of China's robust and increasingly sophisticated CRO service industry. The growth of this sector has been fueled by the tremendous demand from the Western biopharmaceutical industry looking to cut R&D costs without compromising quality. In the meantime, we are seeing the emergence of an exciting new cross-Pacific partnership exemplified by the recent landmark Hutchison MediPharma and Eli Lilly deal focused on jointly developing novel compounds in oncology and inflammation. I am thrilled to have speakers and sponsors from both WuXi and Hutchison at our Pacific Forum," said Dr. Shen.

The biotech/pharmaceutical industry in China will continue to witness revolutionary changes. As an increasing number of MNCs establish residence there, the Chinese government is trying to clean up its act about recent safety recalls and to rid itself of internal scandals that have plagued the State Food and Drug Administration. Many questions immediately arise about the stability and sustainability of this young market. For instance, how will China contribute to the global economy and how will it in turn be affected by these market forces? What are the trends in trans-Pacific R&D outsourcing, licensing & partnering? How can one's IP be protected in the life sciences market? What types of investment and career opportunities are emerging as the biotech/pharmaceutical industry develops?

The 3rd Annual Forum weighs in on these issues and more with speakers and panel discussions from local, national and international CEOs and leaders in academic and biotech/pharmaceutical research, business development, IP law and others. Please join us for a day of interactive discussions, networking, food and of course great international company.

Registration for the Forum is now online. Due to limited seating, early registration by November 1st is strongly encouraged, $20 online registration fee by November 7 and $40 after November 7 and onsite. Coffee, lunch and refreshments will be provided. Please visit www.sabpa.org for complete registration information and the Forum agenda.

For further information on Sponsorship and Event Partnership opportunities, please email .

SABPA is a 501(C)(3) nonprofit organization founded by professionals and scholars from the local Chinese community and with another chapter in Los Angeles/Orange County. SABPA's organizational mission is professional development, education and the establishment of strong Pacific alliances. SABPA celebrated its 5th year anniversary this summer and has seen its membership grow to over 1,000 members. For more information, please visit us on the web: www.sabpa.org.

We would like to thank all of our sponsors and partners for their generous support for this year's Forum:

Gold Sponsors: Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc.; The Johnson School at Cornell University; Foley and Lardner, LLP

Silver Sponsors: The Assay Depot, Inc.; Barney & Barney; BioDuro; BioVerdant; Crown BioSciences; Ernst and Young, LLP; Foundation Medical Development; Irving Hughes; Morrison and Foerster; Pharmaron; Russell Reynolds Associates; Shanghai Medicilon, Inc.; UBS Bank; Vital Therapies, Inc.; Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati; WuXi Pharmatech

Event Partners: Asia Pacific USA Chamber of Commerce (APUCC); BIOCOM; Business Wire; BVS; CONNECT; San Diego Biotech Discussion Group; San Diego Chinese Association; San Diego World Trade Center, UCSD TechTips

Media Sponsors: Chempetitive; ChinaBio Today (ChinaBio Accelerator).

Immusol
Zhu Shen, 858-824-1100