Deal-Making Archives - Page 18 of 59 - BioProcess InternationalBioProcess International

PerkinElmer set to acquire Nexcelom Bioscience for $260m

PerkinElmer will bolster its preclinical portfolio and cell and gene therapy manufacturing capabilities through the acquisition of Nexcelom. PerkinElmer will pay $260 million in cash, with the transaction anticipated to close in the second quarter of 2021. “Nexcelom’s leading cell counting and analysis solutions are a strong complement to PerkinElmer’s preclinical high content imaging, cell painting and automation portfolio for drug discovery and will enhance our ability to support customers in the manufacturing QA/QC phase of cell and gene and…

Aenova invests $19m to expand fill-finish capacity in Italy

by Millie Nelson

The expansion addresses sustained demand particularly for fill-finish services to produce COVID-19 vaccines, says CDMO Aenova Group. German contract development manufacturing organization (CDMO) Aenova has invested more than $19 million to build a sterile production site at its 40,000 square-foot facility in Latina, Italy. The expansion will focus predominately on a fill-finish area for prefilled syringes (PFS) with high-speed filling lines and vials. The first high-speed line to be fitted has a capacity of more than 80 million vials and…

Athenex adds allogeneic assets in $70m Kuur Therapeutics deal

by Millie Nelson

Athenex will leverage its manufacturing capabilities and staff to support the development of Kuur’s NKT cell therapies. Biopharma firm dedicated to developing cancer treatments Athenex has acquired Kuur Therapeutics, a developer of engineered Natural Killer T (NKT) cell therapies used to treat haematological and solid malignancies. Through the acquisition Kurr could receive up to $185 million, through a $70 million upfront payment from Athenex and $115 million in development milestones. According to Athenex, it is not just financial benefit that…

CDMO RoslinCT on board to support CGT training in UK

by Millie Nelson

RoslinCT will provide advanced therapy and vaccine manufacturing training in collaboration with the Scottish Universities Life Sciences Alliance. According to Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult (CGTC), employment in the UK cell and gene therapy space will need to double to more than 6,000 by 2024 to support the number of advance therapies moving into and through the clinic. To meet this need, the Advanced Therapies Skills Training Network (ATSTN) initiative was formed to drive the sector and create economic opportunities…

Laronde aims to turn cells into drug production facilities using eRNA

by Gareth Macdonald

Venture capital backed biotech Laronde has created a new type of RNA it claims can be used to create programmable protein therapeutics. The Massachusetts based firm unveiled its “Endless RNA” platform this week, while also confirming it had secured a $50 million investment to support development and an initial pipeline of medicines from Flagship Pioneering. Endless RNA – or eRNA – is based on of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), which is naturally abundant in circular form within mammalian cells. Unlike…

CDMO round-up: Lonza, AGC Biologics, and BioElpida contract wins

by Millie Nelson

Ankyra Therapeutics contracts Lonza; Oculis selects AGC Biologics to manufacture its investigational drug candidate; BioVaxys signs a contract with BioElpida. Great to have you here for Bioprocess Insider’s CDMO round-up. First up in our contract development manufacturing organization (CDMO) round-up is Swiss firm Lonza, which recently partnered with US-based Ankyra to support manufacturing of its cytokine-based immunotherapy for cancer patients. The immunotherapy candidate is administered directly into the solid tumors and Jeetendra Vaghjiani, director of Commercial Mammalian Development, Lonza told BioProcess Insider…

Ins & outs: Emergent exec shake up following Bayview 483

by Millie Nelson

Emergent announced multiple changes in leadership during its Q1 2021 earnings call to shareholders. Meanwhile, there are changes at Myeloid Therapeutics and Catamaran Bio. Sit back, relax, and enjoy BioProcess Insider’s Ins & Outs. Emergent BioSolutions had been contracted to make millions of doses of Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca’s respective vaccines from its Bayview, Maryland plant. However, production was halted at the facility in April after a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspection resulted in a Form 483…

SBI hoping to kickstart digital bioprocessing revolution through aquila buy

by Dan Stanton

Scientific Bioprocessing (SBI) says it is aiming to create a digital platform to enhance biopharmaceutical workflow through the acquisition of smart sensor and data analytics firm aquila biolabs. Life sciences tool supplier Scientific Industries, through its subsidiary SBI, has acquired aquila biolabs, adding smart sensors and data analytics software for bioprocessing along with facilities in Baesweiler, Germany. “From the earliest interactions with the aquila biolabs team, it became really apparent that we shared the vision of developing technologies that can…

Selecta conducts manufacturing review as it takes over MMA program

by Millie Nelson

Selecta Biosciences will review a manufacturing issue stemming from a third party after taking over the rights to an methylmalonic acidemia (MMA) gene therapy program. Selecta Biosciences and Asklepios BioPharmaceutical (AskBio – acquired by Bayer in October 2020) entered a joint partnership in August 2019 to advance, produce and commercialize adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene therapies using technology platforms from both firms. While both companies’ will continue their collaboration to assess various gene therapy candidates, after a review of its portfolio…

Lack of AAV capacity drives $120m investment for Forge Biologics

by Millie Nelson

Forge Biologics has closed $120 million in Series B financing to expand its AAV manufacturing capabilities and develop gene therapies. The gene therapy contract development manufacturing organization (CDMO) Forge Biologics has raised $120 million with finances led by RA Capital Management, Octagon Capital, Surveyor Capital (a Citadel company), and Marshall Wace. According to Forge, the funding will fast-track the expansion of its adeno-associated virus (AAV) manufacturing CDMO capabilities and capacity and work with its subsidiaries that are developing AAV gene…