Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies, a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) for biologics, viral vaccines and viral vectors, will manufacture Eli Lilly and Company’s COVID-19 therapeutic antibody at its GMP facility in Hillerød, Denmark, deploying capacity reserved for the COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator.
 
The commercial manufacturing falls under the agreement between Lilly and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as part of the COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator to supply potential Lilly therapeutic antibodies for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. The Therapeutics Accelerator is an initiative launched by the Gates Foundation, Wellcome, and Mastercard to speed up the response to the COVID-19 pandemic by identifying, assessing, developing, and scaling up treatments.
 
Earlier this year, Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies announced that it had reserved manufacturing capacity for the COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator, at its large scale biologics production facility in Hillerød. Commercial manufacturing of the Lilly antibody therapy is expected to commence in April 2021.
 
“To help bring the devastating impact of the pandemic to an end, Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies is honored to support the COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator and its mission to bring equitable access to novel treatments,” said Martin Meeson, chief executive officer at Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies. “With the rapid development of COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics, Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies will continue to leverage our technical leadership, world-class facilities and commercial manufacturing flexibility, to help accelerate production to meet patient needs around the world.”
 
Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies’ Hillerød cGMP facility is equipped with 6 x 20,000L bioreactors for the manufacture of cell culture derived biologics for clinical and commercial use and recently announced an investment of $928 million to double this capacity and add drug product filling capabilities. This agreement accounts for part of the production capacity in this facility, which also produces other biologic products.
 
“I am very proud of the hardworking men and women at our Hillerød facility that will play a crucial role in manufacturing COVID-19 antibodies for patients in low- and middle-income countries,” commented Lars Petersen, chief operating officer, Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies, Denmark. “This important initiative from the COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator and Lilly will ensure that these therapies will be accessible to those in need in regions with limited resources.”