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Transdisciplinarity pp 249–266Cite as

A Multi-level Perspective to Biosimilars Development: Pathways Towards Incremental Innovation in the Health Bioeconomy

Part of the Integrated Science book series (IS,volume 5)

Summary

Biosimilar development is one of the extraordinary changes sweeping through the pharmaceutical industry, providing an opportunity for incremental innovation in the health bioeconomy domain. The dawn of the New Biology, global knowledge diffusion that inspires reverse innovation, and an increased political commitment to the real subsumption of nature through the bioeconomy characterize biosimilar development. These advancements come in the backdrop of high health-care costs and an ambition to achieve universal health care for all. This chapter argues that considerations of the multi-level perspective are necessary for a health bioeconomy transformation. Emerging borderless themes for biosimilar development include transdisciplinarity, harmonization, value chain diversifications, intellectual property, and knowledge diffusion. We describe the landscape of biosimilar development across different economic regions and present case examples of health research development and the place of incremental innovations. We elaborate on how regulation and public innovation policies become part of a multi-level governance system, especially in coordinated market economies. Presented themes for multi-level systems and transitions towards a health bioeconomy through biosimilar development involve different pathways leading to transformation, de-alignment, realignment, technological substitution, or reconfiguration. Dynamic interactions between the landscape, regime, and niche level ecosystems alongside the varieties of innovation contribute to this transformation. Finally, we recognize the role of regulatory harmonization in health preparedness and universal coverage. Biosimilars development has emerged as a strategic niche for unlocking the biophysical characteristics of nature. Learnings from complex multi-level systems can allow firms, governments, and individuals to invest in the biosimilar value chain innovatively.

3D art representation of adalimumab (C6428H9912N1694O1987S46). The crystal structure for adalimumab rendered on Predicted on CHpred and rendered on PyMol.

(Adapted with permission from Shadrack Odikara).

The code of this chapter is 01000010 01101001 01101111 01110011 01101001 01101101 01101001 01101100 01100001 01110010 01110011.

Keywords

  • Bioeconomy
  • Biosimilars
  • Borderless
  • Health
  • Innovation
  • Multi-level perspectives

We see extraordinary changes sweeping through the pharmaceutical industry. There is a well-established pattern by which these changes arise. They always have loomed as threats to some, and opportunities to others—and whether it is one or the other is a choice.

Clayton M. Christensen

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France

    Ruth Oriama & Thierry Burger-Helmchen

  2. Institute for Public Policy and Governance (SIPPG), Strathmore University, Nairobi, Kenya

    Ruth Oriama & Robert Mudida

  3. Integrated Science Association (ISA), Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), Strasbourg, France

    Ruth Oriama

Authors
  1. Ruth Oriama
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  2. Robert Mudida
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  3. Thierry Burger-Helmchen
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), Stockholm, Sweden

    Nima Rezaei

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Oriama, R., Mudida, R., Burger-Helmchen, T. (2022). A Multi-level Perspective to Biosimilars Development: Pathways Towards Incremental Innovation in the Health Bioeconomy. In: Rezaei, N. (eds) Transdisciplinarity. Integrated Science, vol 5. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-94651-7_12

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