Astronaut Andy Thomas opens UNSW's new Australian Centre for Astrobiology and gives education funding a serve.

Professor German Spangenberg is arguably Australia's leading researcher into plant genetics and genomics.

John Chiplin, the new CEO of Sydney biopharma Peptech (ASX:PTD), sees strong similarities between the state of Australia's biotechnology industry and California's nascent biotechnology industry in San Diego in the mid-1980s.

ASX-listed, Singapore-based Rockeby Biomed (ASX:RBY) has said it might break even in the year ending June 2007, thanks to its new bird flu test kits.

The Australian Stock Exchange has created a market that attracts not only local biotechnology companies, but also gives opportunities to foreign companies that would be unable to attract capital in their own markets. Helen Schuller reports.

Premier Peter Beattie continues to lay the foundations for his ambition to make Queensland the nation's biotech-pharma mecca, by launching a new report on the state's growing pharmaceutical industry.