If there was one word I would use to describe the atmosphere in the early biotech days, it would be excitement. Biotech already included scientists, professors, companies, and investors. But it was a small group of people compared to today.
There was also some discomfort with the commercialization of bioresearch, especially among academics. Whenever money is involved, many people change how they view things.
That was certainly the case in academia, where more than a few looked negatively at the dollars flowing into basic science research. Here’s an example.
In 1975, the late Judah Folkman, MD, received the first large industrial grant that I believe that anybody ever obtained. It totaled $23 million, was from Monsanto, and made front-page headlines.
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Around 25 years later, Folkman was a dinner speaker, and he was asked to describe the advantages and disadvantages of the grant.
Folkman, who was an extremely humble man, replied, “Let me state the disadvantages first.” He said there’s a gene that a lot of people have, including many professors, that is never expressed directly—a gene called jealousy.
