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Friuli Venezia Giulia: where research, innovation and health work as a system

The Life Sciences sector is an ecosystem capable of attracting international investment and companies in biomedical research. The latest announcement concerns the establishment in the region of the US company Performance Medical Technologies

28 July 2025

5' min read

(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - The Life Sciences sector in Friuli Venezia Giulia is a rapidly expanding ecosystem, capable of attracting international investment and players in biomedical research. The latest major announcement concerns the establishment in the region of the US company Performance Medical Technologies (PMT), specialising in the development of therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, with a particular focus on early-stage Parkinson's disease.

Facilitating collaboration between the public and private sectors by building synergies between the worlds of industry and research, with an eye on innovation. This is one of the objectives of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region through its offices and related bodies, a cradle of innovation that has enabled the region to stand out in theRegional Innovation Scoreboard 2025, which analyses the innovation performance of more than 200 European regions.

REGIONAL INNOVATION SCOREBOARD 2025

Innovation, employment and internationalisation

The SiS FVG - Sistema Scientifico e dell'Innovazione represents the meeting point between 17 institutions active in a region that, thanks to the presence of top-level scientific expertise from all over the world and a large endowment of internationally renowned research infrastructures of excellence, makes the region an ideal place to carry out research, studies and start up new business branches. In 2023, the incoming mobility of foreign researchers and lecturers, i.e. those who come to the region for a period, even a short one, of study or research at SiS FVG institutions recorded anincrease of almost 4,000 units. In fact, attendance rose from 3,938 to an impressive 7,854. Incoming researchers more than doubled from 3,228 to 6,759, while incoming lecturers rose from 710 to 1,095. Almost all of this target group (89%) belongs to the scientific area, which includes Mathematics, Physics, Engineering, ICT, Earth and Universe Sciences.

Networking companies, universities, research centres, start-ups and health institutions. from research and business is the Friuli Venezia Giulia Life Sciences Cluster, managed by the Alto Adriatico 'Andrea Galvani' Società Benefit, set up precisely with the aim of strengthening the attractiveness of Friuli Venezia Giulia as a centre of excellence for research and innovation. Today it counts more than 170 active companies in the fields of biomedicine, nutraceutics, active & assisted living and support to frailty. Between 2019 and 2023, the Life Sciences sector will employ some 5,000 people and generate turnover close to EUR 1 billion, and estimates indicate a need for more professionals in the area over the next three years. And for those entering the area, Agenzia Select Friuli Venezia Giulia represents the gateway, welcoming investment intentions and needs, then bringing them to the attention of all possible regional stakeholders, just as happened with the US-based PMT.

PMT arrives in Trieste: partnership and research potential

This is the context for the official announcement of PMT's establishment in the region on 15 April, after being awarded an incentive for research and innovation activities thanks to a grant from the Department of Research managed by the Life Sciences Cluster. The company, which specialises in the development of new therapeutic options for neurodegenerative diseases (particularly early-stage Parkinson's disease), is based in Virginia, and was accompanied in the investment by Agenzia Select Friuli Venezia Giulia. Fundamental in this sense was the initiation of contacts with the Central Health Directorate of the Region to start a collaboration with the University of Trieste through a Memorandum of Understanding, signed jointly with a protocol between the Region and the Commonwealth of Virginia. In particular, the three departments involved in the agreement are Life Sciences, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Medical, Surgical and Health Sciences of the University of Trieste, with the aim of developing innovative therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, with the development of clinical protocols, technological validation and research. The new operational headquarters is the Urban Center in Trieste, where PMT carries out research and development activities in partnership with the university, the Regional Health Directorate and the Regional Labour Directorate. PMT's current investment projection is a total of 3 million and about ten new hires over the next three years.

The entry of the US company into the region highlights Friuli Venezia Giulia's international attractiveness and its desire to consolidate a competitive ecosystem in the life science sector. "Bringing innovation to the citizens' right to health is a fundamental service not only for the region, but for the entire European community, especially if we think of widespread diseases such as Parkinson's," commented the President of the Region Massimiliano Fedriga during the press conference presenting the agreement. As the governor emphasised, the establishment of virtuous foreign companies contributes to the synergic development of the region and the regional research system.

An excellence of innovation in Europe

This constant focus on innovation has earned the region a top ranking in the Regional Innovation Scoreboard 2025, an assessment tool that compares the performance of regional innovation systems within the European Union and in other European countries such as Norway, Serbia and Switzerland. It is an extension of the broader European Innovation Scoreboard and helps identify regions' strengths and weaknesses in terms of innovation, providing comparative data and identifying areas for improvement.

According to the European Innovation Scoreboard 2025 (the ranking of states), Italy is a 'moderate innovator' and among its regions, three are considered 'strong innovators': these are the Autonomous Province of Trento, Emilia-Romagna and Friuli Venezia Giulia. In particular, Friuli Venezia Giulia ranks 109th in the ranking of European regions, with a performance above the EU average and up one point compared to the last edition in 2023 and 10.7 points compared to 2018. The strengths of the Friuli region, which place it in the top 25 of European regions, are the sale of innovative products and services, business innovation expenditure not resulting from research and development activities, the share of SMEs that have introduced process innovations, and design registration. Also important for the region are international scientific co-publications, the use of cloud computing in companies, public and private co-publications, company collaborations for innovations and patent applications. In summary, it is therefore the dimension of innovative activities that is Friuli Venezia Giulia's real strength.

Towards the future

In conclusion, Friuli Venezia Giulia's Life Sciences sector confirms itself as a strategic platform capable of attracting foreign investment, activating research and supporting employment growth, as demonstrated by the entry of Performance Medical Technologies in Trieste. International cooperation accelerates research into neurodegenerative diseases and creates new professional opportunities in the medical sector. With the projects already underway and new investments expected, the region is a candidate to become a national and European centre of excellence for life sciences.