Biochemicals/Raw Materials

Tris, a Critical Raw Material: Improving the Quality and Consistency of Supply

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ANGUS Life Sciences is the world’s largest supplier of tromethamine buffers and the only manufacturer of the tris molecule based in the Western hemisphere. The company sells directly to biopharmaceutical customers and contract manufacturing organizations as well as to reprocessors who repackage the chemical or process it into different grades and derivatives. After recent expansions in both the United States and Germany, the company now boasts dual-source manufacturing capabilities for its highest-purity tris products and is confident about its ability…

December 21, 2021

Optimizing the AAV Transfection Process in Suspension Cells

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Given the potentially curative nature of gene and gene-modified cell therapies and the successful launches of several such products over the past five years, markets and investments are growing significantly in the sector. In the United States alone, the US Food and Drug Administration has granted approval for several genetic therapies, including Strimvelis (autologous CD34+, developed by GlaxoSmithKline and later sold to Orchard Therapeutics) in 2016 Luxturna (voretigene neparvovec, Spark Therapeutics), Yescarta (axicabtagene ciloleucel, Kite Pharma/Gilead), and Kymriah (tisagenlecleucel, Novartis)…

October 29, 2021

Viral Safety of Viral Vectors:
Special Concerns Arise When the Virus Is the Product

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As anyone who has focused on host-cell proteins as process contaminants can tell you, trying to purify a specific type of molecule from a large mixture of many similar molecules is like trying to find a few particular needles in a huge pile of varied needles. The same could be said for purifying viral vectors from cell culture fluids. When viruses are the products, unwanted viruses are contaminants that must be separated away — or better yet, prevented from being…

October 29, 2021

Transfection Best Practices for AAV Gene Therapy Programs

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As viral vectors continue to push gene therapy innovations closer to market, many researchers are setting their sights on optimizing transfection, the process of delivering corrective genetic material into cells. It’s not just a question of how to transfect them, but also how to do so efficiently and at high volumes. Approaches that work for one cell line might not perform well for others, and transfection protocols can have different implications for scalability and cost during production for clinical trials.…

October 28, 2021

Recombinant Proteins for Cell and Gene Therapy Research: A Conversation with Shenandoah Biotechnology

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Recombinant proteins such as growth factors and cytokines are essential for cell therapy, gene therapy and regenerative medicine research, development and manufacturing. These proteins are critical in the production of desired cell types and subsequent differentiation of cells, to deliver the desired effect. Founded 15 years ago, Shenandoah Biotechnology applies a proprietary method of folding and purifying recombinant proteins from both bacterial and mammalian systems to enable cost-effective, large-scale production of Cell Therapy Grade proteins to support these groundbreaking treatments.…

October 20, 2021

Spontaneous Infection: Did You Leave the Back Door Open to Your Cultivation Suite?

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Manufacture of biopharmaceuticals using mammalian cells inherently incurs a risk of viral contamination during cell cultivation. If introduced, viruses can infect and replicate in cells used to produce a therapeutic protein or vaccine. The consequences of such contaminations can be dramatic. Not only can a company lose contaminated batches, but it also faces potentially extensive root-cause investigations, facility cleanup efforts, and introduction of preventive measures. Until contamination issues are resolved adequately, production should not be resumed, and facility downtime brings…

September 30, 2021

Ask the Expert: Leveraging Quality Management Systems to Achieve Competitive Advantages

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During a May 2021 “Ask the Expert†presentation, Jigisha Patel (vice president of global regulatory compliance and technical services at Spectrum Chemical Manufacturing Corporation) emphasized the need to minimize supply-chain contingencies that lead to variability across raw materials used in biopharmaceutical manufacturing. Deviations in raw-material specifications can jeopardize good manufacturing practice (GMP) compliance and reduce drug-product efficacy and stability. Patel explained how her company’s quality management system ensures that bioprocess materials will meet specifications and process needs. Patel’s Presentation Patel…

September 17, 2021

Take Complexity and Risk Out of Regulatory Compliance

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Novo Nordisk Pharmatech’s high-purity, nontherapeutic insulin is sourced directly from the Novo Nordisk parent company, the world’s largest insulin producer. The product consists of insulin human crystals that are biosynthetically produced by recombinant microbial expression in yeast. Insulin human AF stimulates the proliferation of cells and enhances the yield, and it is a key component in serum-free growth media for mammalian cells. Insulin human AF is used for manufacturing monoclonal antibodies, virus vaccines, gene therapies, and other biological drug products…

August 12, 2021

Raw Materials for Advanced Therapies: When the Process Is the Product, Ingredients Are Key

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Scott Burger and Bill Janssen are both established, independent consultants specializing in gene and cell therapies. This past spring, we three discussed several aspects of raw material strategy for advanced therapies as well as the need for trained technicians in the industry. With a bachelor of science degree in biology from Tulane University (New Orleans, LA, 1983) and a medical doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA, 1988), Scott Burger served his residency training and fellowship at Washington University…

June 18, 2021

Cell Banking in the Spotlight: Advising Biologics Developers About Cell Bank Preparation and Characterization

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Living cells are at the heart of biotechnology, and cell lines for production and testing of biopharmaceuticals are highly valuable assets. The process of banking cells generally moves from development of a research cell bank (RCB) based on a clone of interest to establishment of a master cell bank (MCB), from which working cell banks (WCBs) can be produced. Especially for biotechnology startups, preparation of an MCB can involve a significant jump from work performed in standard laboratory conditions to…

June 7, 2021