Cytiva and BioCentriq, cell and gene therapy contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs), have been awarded funding from the National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIIMBL), a public-private partnership to accelerate biopharmaceutical innovation.
 
The project, which is being granted funding as part of NIIMBL’s $15.8 million initiative to drive biotechnology innovation, will involve the creation of a viral and exotoxin clearance platform in an adeno-associated virus (AAV) manufacturing process. The aim is to develop new standards that can be used for AAV and advance the development and adoption of gene therapies.
 
Emmanuel Abate, President, Genomic Medicine, Cytiva, said, “As pointed out in our 2023 Global Biopharma Resilience Index, collaborations are essential to solve the challenges of bringing future therapeutics to market. Cytiva and BioCentriq can bring the combined intellectual power of both organizations to develop the solutions needed to advance the AAV manufacturing process and the genomic medicine industry.”
 
Haro Hartounian, PhD, CEO of BioCentriq, said, “We are thrilled to be selected to work on this project at such a crucial time for the industry. Achieving robust and scalable viral clearance for one of the most commonly used viral vectors is a major step toward achieving true scalability and reducing cost of goods. We feel lucky to collaborate with such a committed organization like Cytiva in these efforts.”
 
This work is performed under financial assistance award #70NANB21H086 from the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology.