Shanghai, China, and Brussels, Belgium, June 27, 2023 – OBiO Technology Corp., Ltd. (“OBiO”), a leading gene and cell therapy CDMO in China, and Univercells Technologies, a leading provider of novel biomanufacturing technologies for flexible and scalable advanced therapies and vaccine production, have entered into a strategic agreement to deploy novel technologies in Shanghai. The NevoLine™ Upstream biomanufacturing platform with scale-X™ bioreactors will now be offered in OBiO’s recently expanded (+828,00 square feet) GMP Shanghai facility to accelerate gene therapy manufacturing.
The strategic agreement combines the capacity and capabilities of OBiO process development (PD) scientists with enabling platforms and support from Univercells Technologies. The combined know-how and capabilities will put OBiO in the best position to offer best-in-class GMP manufacturing services from R&D to commercial stages to gene therapy developers.
“Bringing gene therapies to market safely requires reliable, scalable manufacturing technologies. We were intrigued by the potential and became early adopters of the scale-X technology in 2020. Our recently published poster details the successful scale-up of an oncolytic Herpes Simplex Virus Type-1 (HSV-1) vector from scale-X hydro (2.4 m²) to scale-X carbo bioreactor (30 m²), with significant reductions in manpower, materials and space requirements,” said Jia Guodong, CEO, OBiO. “We will pursue this comprehensive collaboration with Univercells Technologies in multi products, conducting process development in the advanced fixed-bed bioreactor not only for HSV, but also for Lentiviral vector, Adeno-associated virus and other cell and gene therapy modalities. Such holistic capability will help customers accelerate their cell and gene therapy development while bringing substantial time and cost-saving benefits to developers and patients.”
“As we enter this agreement, the teams are already planning to scale up the oncolytic HSV-1 process in the 600m² scale-X nitro integrated in the continuous NevoLine Upstream platform in record time. The work has been rewarding because both companies share a joint mission of applying technology innovation to enable gene therapies for better lives,” said Florence Vicaire, CCO, Univercells Technologies. “Throughout the process, OBiO has been an exceptional partner, demonstrating deep expertise in advancing gene therapy candidates from bench to clinics. We look forward to further increasing their capabilities to meet the growing demand for gene therapies at a reduced cost, in China and globally.”
To learn more about the enabling technologies, please visit: https://www.univercellstech.com/products/.
To make an inquiry into booking space with the OBiO team, please email: marketing@obiosh.com.
About OBiO Technology
OBiO Technology (Shanghai) Corp., Ltd. (OBiO, 688238.SH) is a gene and cell therapy-focused CRO and CDMO founded in 2013. In China for global customers, we offer holistic research, development, and manufacturing solutions for vectorology studies, functional genomics, process and analytical development, IND-enabling CMC, clinical and commercial manufacturing. With “enable gene therapy for better lives” as our mission, we are committed to providing high-quality service to global customers, advancing your product from bench to clinic, and bringing benefit to populations around the world. For more information about OBiO Technology, visit www.obio-tech.com.
About Univercells Technologies
Univercells Technologies is a global provider of innovative biomanufacturing technologies to achieve cost-effective Advanced Therapies and vaccines production from R&D to commercial scales. The company offers a comprehensive technology portfolio leveraging the strengths of process intensification and chaining as a direct answer to the growing demand of viral vectors and viral vaccines. Univercells Technologies is committed to helping customers increase performance with minimized footprint and costs today, while anticipating the needs of tomorrow.
Building upon years of expertise and capitalizing on technology vetted by world leaders, Univercells Technologies was incorporated in Belgium in 2020 following its carve-out from Univercells with the support of the Univercells Group and Gamma Biosciences.
LinkedIn: Univercells Technologies