Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics has opened a new life sciences laboratory on the campus of the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester, MA, dedicated to application testing of single-use systems, with a focus on the cell and gene therapy market.

“We are very excited to have this new capability as we believe that it uniquely positions us to explore and examine the interface between materials and biology,” said Anne Hardy, vice president of R&D for Saint-Gobain’s high-performance materials sector. “Continuing to build this understanding is crucial to ensuring appropriate levels of material selection, modification and design in our products.”

Saint-Gobain designed its new facility to meet the highest quality and safety standards available to the industry. The Biosafety Level 2 lab enables the isolation, processing and culturing of primary and immortalized cells, and is equipped with high-end analytical equipment to observe and evaluate material, cell and protein interactions. A dedicated space for application development supports the advancement of new products with specific capabilities in sterile welding, pumping and low temperature testing.

“The Worcester lab is a critical component of our strategy to build upon our capabilities in the cell and gene therapy space,” said Steve Maddox, general manager, Saint-Gobain Life Sciences. “It allows us to more readily leverage our material science expertise to advance scalable, single-use solutions in bioprocessing.”