Lonza wins another antibody contract
pharmafile | July 19, 2011 | News story | Manufacturing and Production |Â Â Immune Pharmaceuticals, Lonza, pharma manufacturing newsÂ
Lonza has won a contract to manufacture Immune Pharmaceuticals’ antibody-based drug for inflammatory disorders, bertilimumab, at its mammalian development and manufacturing facility in the UK.
The agreement will see the Swiss CMO produce clinical supplies of the antibody, which is just about to start a phase II trials programme in inflammatory bowel diseases, such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.
Bertilimumab is the first monoclonal antibody to specifically neutralise human eotaxin-1, a chemokine associated with inflammatory disease activity.
Until recently the antibody was wholly-owned by Canada’s iCo Therapeutics, but last month was licensed to Immune Pharmaceuticals in a deal valued at more than $32 million, including milestone payments, for systemic applications. iCo has retained development rights in ocular applications.
Lonza has been involved in the development and manufacturing of bertilimumab since 2008, when it won a contract to manufacture small-scale supplies of the antibody at its mammalian development centre in Slough, UK.
The Slough unit was set up specifically to help smaller biopharmaceutical companies get new biologic drugs into development. The head of Lonza’s custom manufacturing division, Dr Stephan Kutzer, said: “this partnership is a direct reflection of our commitment to emerging pharmaceutical companies as they advance through clinical phase milestones.”
The CMO announced a £16 million ($26m) expansion programme for the Slough unit earlier this year to add fermentation and purification suites, a process development laboratory and warehousing. The additions are due to be completed by the end of 2012.
The Slough unit currently covers around 23,000 sq.m. and employs around 650 staff, principally involved in the small-scale, GMP manufacturing of recombinant therapeutic proteins and monoclonal antibodies, as well as process R&D.
Phil Taylor
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