The universities of Dundee and St Andrews are ranked among the top 10 best international academic institutions for scientists to work in

(Source : The Scientist)

Scotland is a global leader in animal bioscience and has the largest concentration of animal science related expertise anywhere in Europe

Edinburgh is a major centre for genomics and bioinformatics research, with world-class capabilities at Edinburgh University, Roslin Institute and the Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine

Scotland leads the way on bioinformatics-specific degree courses per head of population than any other comparable location

Over 2,000 bioinformatics research staff are based in Scotland

To date, 65 competitive grants have been awarded to bioinformatics in Scotland

'HECToR' is a £113 million advanced super-computer sited at Edinburgh University capable of 60 million calculations per second and is three times faster than any other super-computer

The estimated global bioinformatics market is worth over £1 billion

Scotland is world-leader for the number of bioinformatics research groups per head of population

Edinburgh BioQuarter, a landmark £600 million life sciences facility, makes Scotland one of the world’s top ten centres for biomedical commercialisation

Scotland is raising its profile in life sciences research − the University of Dundee produces more life sciences citations than Cambridge and Oxford, and is one of the leading scientific workplaces in the world

(Source : The Scientist)

Key Scottish CROs include Scottish Biomedical and CXR Biosciences - CXR won the inaugural UKTI Biotechnology Award in 2006, in recognition of its technology and business expertise

Scotland has an established network of over 50 pharmaceutical clinical trials support and research organisations undertaking both clinical as well as pre-clinical activities

More medical research is conducted per head of population in Scotland than anywhere else in Europe, creating substantial opportunities for contract research organisations

Five of the world's top 10 life sciences companies are based in Scotland: Quintiles, PPD, Charles River Technologies, Kendle, and Aptuit

Aquapharm Biodiscovery Ltd has signed a research agreement with the University of Dundee to help it develop new drugs based on marine products that may help in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease

BigDNA, located at the Roslin Biocentre in Edinburgh, has been granted a key patent in Japan which covers its vaccine against hepatitis B

A total of 264 organisations in Scotland are engaged in developing human healthcare products and services

A total of 115 companies work in drug discovery and development in Scotland

Division of Pathway Medicine based at the University of Edinburgh is a pioneering research centre exploring the mechanisms of human disease at molecular level

In 2010, Scotland's life sciences companies attracted £36 million of equity investment

Scotland has a wealth of specific expertise in key therapeutic areas − cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, central nervous system diseases, viruses, immunology, stem cells and regenerative technology

Scotland is home to the second largest life sciences cluster in the UK

More medical research per head of the population is conducted in Scotland than anywhere else in Europe, making it one of Europe’s fastest growing sectors

Scotland has a substantial clinical research base and clinical trials expertise, such as Charles River Laboratories, Pleiad Devices and PPD

Scotland is home to a growing cluster of over 140 medical technology companies – including Aircraft Medical, IDMOS, Touch Bionics, Axis-Shield, LifeScan Scotland, Barco, Vascutek

(Source : Life Sciences Scotland Jan 2012)

More than 6,000 poeple work within the medtech industry in Scotland

(Source : Life Sciences Scotland Jan 2012)

Scotland has been named one of the 'Top 5 Global Locations' for carrying out biotechnology research by respected industry magazine Fierce Biotech

(Source : Fierce Biotech)

Global medical technologies market is worth £170 billion and is set to grow to around £300 billion by 2015

Scotland has a pool of 17,000 graduates with skills and qualifications suited to careers in medical technology

(Source : Life Sciences Scotland Jan 2012)

Scotland is home to a dedicated Medical Devices Doctoral Training Centre at the University of Strathclyde

University of Strathclyde is home to Strathclyde MedTech dedicated advice and support network to help Scottish companies tap into the £170 billion global medical technologies market

Scotland has significant R&D and manufacturing presence with strengths in diagnostics, wound care, implants, disposables, opthalmics and imaging

Scotland’s medical technology sector is supported by more than 150 suppliers

All Scotland's 15 universities are involved in ground-breaking medical technology research

More than £58 milion of planned capital expenditure in an exciting range of investment and R&D projects was announced in 2009

(Source : Scottish Life Sciences 2009 Review)

Life sciences in Scotland has access to around 60 university and research facilities

Scotland's life sciences sector has access to 17,000 research staff and strong links with Europe, Asia and the US

World-leading Roslin Institute is home to 500 top animal research scientists at the forefront of tackling animal health and welfare issues around the globe

The Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic focuses on multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's and Motor Neurone diseases research

Scotland is home to Europe’s largest and most highly-regarded stem cell research community

Half of all UK stem cell research licences are issued to organisations in Scotland

Scotland outperforms other countries in terms of stem cell research backed by its wealth of world-class medical schools and research centres

Currently, more medical research is carried out per head of population in Scotland than anywhere else in Europe, easing the translation of stem cell research into clinical benefits

First in the world for stem cell research based citation impact – Scotland is at the forefront of stem cell research and regenerative medicine

The University of Edinburgh is ranked number three in the world for stem cell research based on citation impact

(Source : ScienceWatch)

The Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine has over 200 scientists and clinicians, with on-site GMP development expertise, all based at Edinburgh BioQuarter

Scotland has specific expertise in induced pluripotent stem cell (iPS) research and development, bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells, and embryonic stem cells

ReNeuron's groundbreaking Phase I trial using expanded neural stem cells in stroke patients is a world first. The stem cells are manufactured by Angel Biotechnology in Scotland.

In its first two years, the TMRC has funded 65 translational medicine projects

(Source : Translational Medicine Research Initiative (TMRI))

Some of the world’s most prominent cancer studies are conducted at the Cancer Research UK-Beatson Laboratories in Glasgow

Scotland has four university centres of excellence in translational medicine − Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow

Clinical research in translational medicine will have received more than £50 million funding, spread over five years, by 2012

NHS Scotland and our university medical schools are committed to positioning Scotland as ‘single research site’ for translational medicine

The life sciences sector is worth over £3.1 billion to the Scottish economy annually

Scotland is world leader in terms of collaboration, funding and research excellence

Scotland is home to more than 630 life sciences organisations, including Charles River Laboratories, Life Technologies, Johnson and Johnson and Millipore, employing over 32,000 staff

70 percent of life sciences companies based in Scotland focus on human healthcare, including drug discovery and development, therapeutics, medical devices, diagnostics and contract research services