Overview:
The Toscana Life Sciences Foundation (TLS) is a non-profit organization that operates in the regional life sciences landscape to facilitate the start-up process, support medical research, manage technology transfer and research valorisation activities, promote intra and extra-regional networking. TLS operates an incubator, and it provides spaces, technological and pre-clinical test platforms, scientific, business and intellectual property protection services. In addition, TLS is the manager of the Tuscan Life Sciences Cluster and supports the Tuscany Region for the enhancement of biomedical research and development of policies for innovation in the health sector.
Profile:
The Tuscany Life Sciences Foundation (TLS) is a non-profit organization that has been operating since 2005 in the regional panorama, with the aim of supporting research activities in the field of life sciences and, in particular, to support the development of projects from basic research to industrial application.
In particular, the Foundation was created to facilitate the process of business start-up in the field of biotechnology applied to human health; to support research in the field of orphan diseases; to manage technological transfer activities in the biomedical field and to enhance the value of research, also through national and international networking activities. To achieve these goals, TLS has created an incubator, where it provides space, technology platforms and services and offers its support in industrial, scientific and business development.
The founding members of TLS are the Region of Tuscany, the Fondazione and Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena; the Province of Siena; the Universities of Siena, Pisa and Florence; the Sant' Anna and Normale di Pisa Schools of Higher Education and the Imt Institute of High Studies in Lucca; the Siena University Hospital, the Municipality and the Chamber of Commerce of Siena.
As an incubator, TLS provides companies with a staff of professionals with experience in the scientific and industrial world, specialized in technology transfer processes, equipped spaces, technological platforms (wide range of analytical instruments, instrumentation for research activities in the molecular biological field), an animal facility, BSL3 laboratories for the study of class III pathogens. TLS also operates also as a research foundation, supporting incubator-hosted companies and groups active in the fields of oncology, immunology, immunology, diabetes, virology, blood derivatives and new diagnostic technologies, in experimental design and in the conduct of applied research activities, thanks to its technological platforms and scientific expertise.
TLS is the entity that coordinates and manages the activities of the Tuscan Life Sciences Cluster, founded in 2011 by an initiative of the Tuscany Region, aimed at supporting the growth of the life sciences sector in Tuscany.
In addition, TLS, through the UvaR Office, collaborates with the Legal Consultancy, Research and Support Department of Clinical Government Bodies within the Directorate General for Citizenship Rights and Social Cohesion of the Region of Tuscany to structure an integrated and synergistic system of research and innovation in a coordinated context between Universities and Regional Hospitaller-University Companies. In particular, UvaR is responsible for evaluating, monitoring and exploiting research results in terms of applicability and transferability. TLS also supports the Directorate General in the definition of regional strategies and consequent actions for attracting investment in the regional territory, also according to the objectives of European programming: generating excellent science, promoting industrial leadership and innovating to face social challenges.
TLS represents the Region of Tuscany in the National Cluster Life Sciences (Alisei), a wide and inclusive network of Italian excellence operating throughout the country in one of the strategic areas for the country system, and is a founding and coordinating member of the ITS VITA Foundation, which deals with the management and organizational aspects of training courses in the regional area in the field of industrial biotechnology and medical devices.
