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This article presents research based on a case study of Bern University Hospital and the Greater Bern Area that analyses the hospital's influence on innovation in the regional medical device industry. The study draws upon the concept of sectoral innovation systems enlarged with a space-oriented model of agents' innovation-related behaviour. Its main data stem from semi-structured interviews with representatives from regional companies and the hospital. The findings confirm the systemic character of innovation in medical technology and the role of university hospitals as the main functional source of medical device innovation. At the inception of the medical device industry, innovations were implemented in a regional setting, but with the maturation of the industry, this setting has yielded to an almost global setting for innovation. This international setting became prevalent largely due to the marketing considerations of the industry, showing that from an industrial management point of view, product inno...

The performance of a previously developed immunochemical biosensor screening method for fluoroquinolone (FQ) antibiotics in poultry muscle, fish and egg was compared with established methods. Blank sample material of the target matrices was individually spiked with the FQs at half maximum residue levels. Homogeneity of the test materials was confirmed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Identical sets of spiked samples as well as incurred samples from a previous feeding experiment were sent to three independent laboratories and analysed by LC-MS/MS, a microbiological assay and the new biosensor assay. The new method correctly identified all contaminated samples and demonstrated advantages in sensitivity and analysis time compared to the microbiological screening assay.