I’ve never actually met the folks at FierceBiotech in person, but today I felt like we had undergone some kind of Vulcan mind meld. The online industry publication unveiled its annual Fierce 15 list of the 15 most promising private biotech companies in the U.S. What jumped out at me right away? All but one of them are companies that my colleague Ryan and I found interesting enough to profile in depth in the past year. (And we only skipped the 15th, U.K.-based Kymab, because Xconomy doesn’t have a bureau in the U.K.)
If this list is an indicator, New England is probably the hottest region in the world for biotech innovation today, home to nine of this year’s top 15, but Seattle, San Diego, and San Francisco are represented on the list as well.
For readers curious to learn more about these typically obscure private companies, I thought I’d compile links to highlights from our coverage of them—and assure you that we expect to follow their stories for years to come. Meanwhile, if you have any suggestions for companies you think have a good shot at making the list in 2011, let me know and I’ll check them out.
Acceleron Pharma, Cambridge, MA
Adimab, Lebanon, NH
Alder Biopharmaceuticals, Bothell, WA
Amira Pharmaceuticals, San Diego
Anchor Therapeutics, Cambridge, MA
Avila Therapeutics, Waltham, MA
Catabasis Pharmaceuticals, Cambridge, MA
Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, Watertown, MA
Eleven Biotherapeutics, Cambridge, MA
Gelesis, Boston
iPierian, South San Francisco
Kymab, Cambridge, UK
Plexxikon, Berkeley, CA
Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals, Watertown, MA
VentiRx Pharmaceuticals, San Diego
