Milan Panic has made great strides in his business and political endeavors.

The story behind MP Biomedicals LLC and its founder goes beyond the biotechnology industry. Founder, President and CEO Milan Panic has achieved numerous successes in the medical industry, as well as in his humanitarian pursuits.

After studying at the University of Southern California, Panic founded ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc. from his home in 1959 with $200. The company's first product was commercialized DNA, which Panic says soon became the "forerunner of a series of potentially new therapeutic molecules based on nucleic acid research."

In 1985, ICN hit a major milestone when the United States approved of the antiviral ribavirin Virazole. As the company's flagship drug, Virazole was FDA-approved in 1998 for the combination-therapy treatment of chronic hepatitis C. "The royalty in just one year for Virazole was $275 million," Panic says. "Sales were close to $2 billion."

ICN continued to grow in sales and reach. By 2002, the company operated 52 plants and facilities in 31 countries; its products were sold in 90 countries. It manufactured, marketed and distributed about 600 prescription pharmaceuticals under the ICN brand name, as well as 55,000 biotechnology research products and medical diagnostics.

"We started with $200 and grew to sales exceeding $25 billion in 2002," Panic says. "ICN was very profitable every year." In 2002, Panic stepped down as chairman and CEO of ICN and purchased MP Biomedicals. ICN was split into three arms - one in Europe, one in the United States and a new company, Ribapharm, which focuses on antiviral products, including ribavarin.

Panic founded MP Biomedicals in 2003 when he purchased a portion of ICN for $15 million, "which was very different from when I founded ICN Pharmaceuticals," he notes.

Located in Costa Mesa, Calif., MP Biomedicals manufactures medical testing and research products, such as chemical reagents, cells and molecules used in research and testing. The company's more than 55,000 products are used by scientists and researchers at universities, pharmaceutical companies and government organizations including the National Institutes of Health.

MP Biomedicals says it is the only company in the industry to offer a comprehensive line of life science, fine chemical and diagnostic products. A worldwide organization, MP Biomedicals has additional facilities in Europe, Asia and Australia.

The company expanded its operations through acquisitions in 2004, including Genlabs Diagnostics Pte Ltd. in Singapore and Qbiogene, with operations in Montreal and France. "Acquiring facilities in Europe has been a big advance for us," Panic says. "Right now, 50 percent of our business is in Europe and 50 percent is in the United States."

Further expanding its U.S. capabilities, last year MP Biomedical built a 121,589-square-foot facility in Solon, Ohio. Panic says the $8.5 million expansion is the company's Midwestern regional headquarters. The building is strategically located within 500 miles of the universities and companies MP Biomedicals works with. MP Biomedicals also works through a network of global distributors, including its ISO 9002 diagnostic products facility in New York and distribution centers in Ohio and California.

Panic says MP Biomedicals develops close working relationships with its customers. "We work closely with numerous research departments at the universities and other health organizations," he explains. "With the Army, for example, they have problems with diseases from other countries; they are more exotic than what we see in the United States. So, it's a joint effort to identify solutions and treatments."

Panic acknowledges it has been a challenge to identify another breakthrough product. "Virazole was huge for us, and our current challenge is to do that again," he explains. "We introduce new products for universities and other institutions to use. Then, we identify which products are best suited for development and begin the testing process. Right now, we are working with UCLA to address Alzheimer's."

The study, funded by the Alzheimer's Disease Association, involves testing the effectiveness of insulin-like Growth Factor I, a naturally occurring hormone.

Panic says the main struggle with introducing new products is copycat products from the competition. However, MP Biomedicals remains dedicated to developing new drugs and pursuing growth.

Panic says MP Biomedicals has been a "socially motivated company" since its inception. Every employee with a child under 12 years old receives a monthly $100 stipend to pay for childcare. Scholarship programs are also in place for both employees and their children. "No child of our employees will not go to college due to financial reasons," Panic stresses. "We have employees and their children pursuing education with the help of MP Biomedicals."

However, employee and family benefits are the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Panic's humanitarian efforts. Panic was born in Yugoslavia in 1929. As a young adult, he joined the resistance movement to battle fascism. He moved to the United States in 1956 and subsequently founded ICN. In 1975, Panic was elected as a member of the finance committee of the Democratic National Committee. He was appointed to the board of directors of the Freedom Foundation, an organization dedicated to educating American citizens about their rights and responsibilities.

In the late '80s, Panic financed the inoculations for more than 200,000 children in Kosovo. He was awarded the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 1986 for his "distinguished service to humanity." In 1992, he served as prime minister of the FR Yugoslavia, and was named one of The Wall Street Journal's 1992 Europeans of the Year in 1993.