HILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--More than 40 high-paying life sciences jobs will remain in West Philadelphia as two life sciences companies move into the University City Science Center's newest building at 3711 Market Street on the Avenue of Technology in Philadelphia, PA. Leading the way is Avid Radiopharmaceuticals, Inc., with 37 jobs. Just four years after it spun out of the University of Pennsylvania, Avid has outgrown the 5,000 square feet of space it occupied in the University City Science Center's Port Business Incubator for startup companies at 3624 Market Street. Today, Avid announced that it moved into 16,000 square feet of custom-fitted office and lab space on the seventh floor of the Science Center's new 155,000-square foot building at 3711 Market Street. Avid develops molecular imaging agents that allow for the earlier detection of diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson's disease, Dementia with Lewy Bodies and Diabetes mellitus. The company's goal is to develop compounds to diagnose these diseases before patients display symptoms, allowing for earlier treatment. In May 2009, Avid announced that it completed the first closing of a $34.5 million Series D financing. Also moving from the Port Business Incubator into 3711 Market Street is AlumiFuel Power, Inc., an alternative energy company that generates hydrogen gas and steam for multiple niche applications. AlumiFuel currently represents six jobs. "Government investment in the life sciences sector – and the Science Center in particular – is paying off," says Science Center President and CEO Dr. Stephen S. Tang, Ph.D. "We received $7 million from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Business In Our Sites program and a low-interest loan from the PIDC that helped support the construction of 3711 Market Street. Since 1963, the Science Center's graduate companies have created more than 15,000 jobs that remain in the Greater Philadelphia Region. Avid is a shining example of the impact the life sciences sector has on the region's economy."
