Does "Competing groups are working closer to biology" mean ...?

Does "Competing groups are working closer to biology" mean "Competing groups are working toward biology, getting/approaching nearer to it (biology)"?

Context:

Search for the origin of life

Creating cell-like structures is currently very popular in the field of chemistry, with various methods being tried at the Institute for Molecules and Materials (IMM). Professor Wilhelm Huck, for example, is making cells from tiny droplets of solutions very similar to cytoplasm, and Van Hest's group is building cells using polymers.

Competing groups are working closer to biology; making cells from fatty acids, for example. We would like to do the same in the future. Another step would be to make cells that produce their own energy supply. We are also working on ways of controlling the movement of chemicals within the cell, towards organelles. By simulating these things, we are able to better understand living cells. One day we will even be able to make something that looks very much like the real thing...'



More:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140114091707.htm