Gov. Matt Blunt held a Tuesday morning breakfast for business leaders and held court at the Missouri pavilion during a crowded exhibition hall reception that evening. In between, he had one-on-one meetings with companies such as Thousand Oaks, Calif.-based Amgen, a national biotech pharmaceutical star.

His message: The Show-Me state has a good quality of life, biotech business infrastructure, private investors and, perhaps, a job-creation or tax incentive or two on the table for businesses ready to expand or locate there.

"Life sciences is an important part of my vision for the state of Missouri," Blunt said at the breakfast. "We're in a prime position to become a national hub" of the industry that provides high-paying jobs and promises rapid growth for the future.

Already, the industry adds $23 billion to the state's economy and grows at an average annual rate of 6 to 10 percent, he said. Missouri's more than 2,100 life science companies employ more than 183,000 people. Life science researchers attract more than $1 billion in federal grants every year.

"We do have a strong foundation (and) it's easy to get complacent," Blunt said. Attending BIO 2006, with nearly 20,000 attendees and representatives from dozens of states and several countries, "reminds us that we've got to be very focused if we're going to emerge as one of the spots on the globe for life science."

"Having the governor really look them in the eye and communicate that we're serious about their interest in our state, it's powerful," Steinhoff said. He and his staff will follow up with trips to Boston, San Diego and other biotech hot spots to meet the prospects on their own turf and try to seal some deals -- a process that can take months or even years.

They hope to be able to tout the Lewis and Clark discovery initiative, a life-science research and commercialization investment included in Blunt's fiscal 2007 budget proposal. The initiative would use $450 million generated by selling assets of the state's student loan program to create scholarships, build university research centers and business incubators, and support commercialization of scientific discoveries.

The governor's attendance among more than 200 Missourians sends an important message about the state's commitment, said Greg Steinhoff, director of the Department of Economic Development.