Pharmaceutical Technology Editors

ApiJect Systems, an injectable technology company, announced on Jan. 28, 2021 that it has appointed a new Leadership Advisory Board to join the company’s co-founder and chairman, Jay Walker, and company CEO, Franco Negron.

"ApiJect is indeed privileged to welcome its first members of our Leadership Advisory Board,” Negron said in a company press release. “We see this board as an essential part of our company's mission to be world leaders in the technological advancement of injectable devices. These are individuals who dream big and seek aggressive change in global and US public health."

The Leadership Advisory Board members include:

Professor Heidi J. Larson, PhD, director of The Vaccine Confidence Project, professor of Anthropology, Risk, and Decision Science, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine; clinical professor, Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, WA

Dr. Regina M. Benjamin, MD, family physician founder of Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic

Dr. Edward Kelley, chief global health officer for ApiJect Research Foundation

Dr. Michael J. Free, OBE, former vice-president for Technology at PATH

Rueben M. Stokes, former vice president of Global Diversity and Inclusion for Thermo Fisher Scientific, and former corporate senior executive in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Dr. Marietta Vázquez, MD, professor, Yale University School of Medicine, attending, Yale Pediatric Primary Care Center.

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The new board will join the company’s co-founder and chairman, Jay Walker, and company CEO, Franco Negron. 

ApiJect Appoints New Leadership Advisory Board

CureVac and Rentschler Biopharma announced on Feb. 1, 2021 that they have started the process of setting up manufacturing capabilities for CureVac´s COVID-19 vaccine, CVnCoV.

The companies previously entered into a collaboration in November 2020 with the goal of producing more than 100 million doses of the CureVac vaccine per year at Rentschler’s Laupheim, Germany facility, Rentschler said in a company press release. Currently, Rentschler is preparing for largescale cGMP production of the vaccine while CureVac handles the vaccine’s clinical Phase IIb/III trial.

“We are pleased to partner with Rentschler Biopharma, whose quality work is well known in the industry, to conduct key aspects of the CVnCoV production process,” said Dr. Florian von der Mülbe, chief production officer of CureVac, in the press release. “CureVac has started building an integrated European vaccine manufacturing network with several CDMO partners. With this strategy, the company will expect a significant increase in manufacturing capacity for CVnCoV, potentially reaching up to several hundred million doses per year while mitigating potential supply chain risks.”

“From the beginning of our planning process, the relationship between the CureVac and Rentschler Biopharma teams has been highly collaborative, driven by our common goal of doing our part to address the major global need for safe and effective vaccines against COVID-19,” added Federico Pollano, senior vice-president, Global Business Development at Rentschler, in the press release. “We are working tirelessly to optimize the production chain and then obtain the necessary regulatory certifications, so that we can begin manufacturing large-scale commercial supply as soon as possible.”

The companies previously entered into a collaboration in November 2020 with the goal of producing more than 100 million doses of the CureVac vaccine per year at Rentschler’s Laupheim, Germany facility.

CureVac and Rentschler Accelerate COVID-19 Vaccine Manufacturing

WuXi STA, a subsidiary of WuXi AppTec, announced on Feb. 2, 2021 that it will purchase Bristol Myers Squibb’s manufacturing facility in Couvet, Switzerland. The facility will be WuXi STA’s first European site.

Under the terms of the agreement, WuXi STA will acquire the site’s operations and assets, including the plant, equipment, and workforce, WuXi STA said in a company press release. The transaction is expected to close by the second quarter of 2021.

“The Couvet site is a world-class facility designed for quality, safety, and efficiency, and we believe WuXi STA will be able to leverage the capacity and capabilities for its own operations as it continues to play a vital role for patients around the world,” said Lou Schmukler, president, Global Product Development and Supply, Bristol Myers Squibb, in the press release. “This is an important step in the ongoing evolution of our manufacturing network to support our product portfolio. Switzerland remains an important strategic location for Bristol Myers Squibb, and we look forward to maintaining a strong presence in the Neuchâtel area.”

“We are pleased to add the Couvet manufacturing facility to our growing global manufacturing site network and look forward to working with the talented team who share our focus on excellence and a patient-centered approach,” added Dr. Minzhang Chen, CEO of WuXi STA, in the press release. “The acquisition will allow WuXi STA to better serve European markets and support our global customers to deliver innovative medicines and treatments to patients around the world.”

WuXi STA will acquire the site’s operations and assets, including the plant, equipment, and workforce.

WuXi STA to Purchase Bristol Myers Squibb’s Switzerland Manufacturing Facility

Horizon Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company located in Ireland, announced on Feb. 1, 2021 that it will acquire Viela Bio, a US-based biotechnology company, for $3 billion.

Under the terms of the agreement, Horizon will acquire all shares of Viela Bio’s common stock at a price of $53 per share and, following the completion of the deal, Horizon will acquire all remaining shares not tendered in the offer, Horizon said in a company press release. The transaction is set to close by the end of the first quarter of 2021.

Horizon will now have access to Viela’s rare disease medicine portfolio which includes:

Uplizna (inebilizumab-cdon)—the first and only FDA-approved B-cell-depleting humanized monoclonal antibody (mAb) for the treatment of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD), an autoimmune disease that attacks the optic nerve, spinal cord, and brain stem.

VIB4920—an investigational fusion protein aimed at blocking a key co-stimulatory pathway involved in many autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

VIB7734—an investigational human mAb designed to reduce plasmacytoid dendritic cells, a cell type that is involved in the development of multiple autoimmune diseases.

“This acquisition represents a significant step forward in advancing our strategy—to expand our pipeline in order to accelerate our growth over the long term,” said Tim Walbert, chairman, president, and CEO, Horizon, in the press release. “Adding Viela’s research and clinical development capabilities along with its deep, mid-stage biologics pipeline to our seasoned R&D and commercial teams, advances our transformation to an innovation-driven biotech company where we will build on the success of TEPEZZA and KRYSTEXXA to bolster our long-term growth trajectory. We intend to maximize the full potential of Viela’s pipeline, including the pursuit of additional future indications.”

“We are pleased that Horizon recognizes the value of our robust R&D pipeline, our commercial medicine [Uplizna], which is an important treatment option for patients with NMOSD, and our talented team,” added Bing Yao, PhD, chairman and CEO, Viela Bio, in the press release. “We believe that the combined pipeline, including the pursuit of additional potential indications, has the potential to yield innovative new medicines to treat autoimmune and severe inflammatory diseases. Our collective R&D expertise coupled with Horizon’s commercial capabilities, has the potential to provide benefit to more patients with high unmet treatment needs.”

The deal, which is set to close by the end of the first quarter of 2021, will provide Horizon with access to Viela’s rare disease medicine portfolio. 

Horizon Therapeutics to Acquire Viela Bio for $3 Billion

SPT Labtech, an automated instrumentation and consumables designer and developer, has acquired Apricot Designs, a US-based laboratory equipment supplier, in the latter half of January 2021.

Through the acquisition, SPT will have the ability to expand its portfolio of liquid handling technologies as part of its larger portfolio of automation solutions for drug discovery, structural biology, genomics, cryo-electron microscopy, sample management, and biobanking, SPT said in a Jan. 21, 2021 company press release. The agreement will also increase SPT’s global footprint through Apricot’s US and Asia locations.

"We are delighted to welcome Apricot Designs to the SPT Labtech group,” said Patrick Bennett, group CEO at SPT Labtech, in the press release. “The company's liquid handling technology products seamlessly complement our existing portfolio of high-performance positive displacement instruments. The addition reflects our continued commitment to accelerating scientific research by maximizing our customers' productivity. The powerful combination of technologies and application know-how will enable us to streamline end-to-end workflows and serve a wider range of research applications."

"We are delighted to join SPT Labtech, a company with an impressive reputation for creating innovative, automated solutions for life sciences,” added Felix H. Yiu, CEO of Apricot Designs, in the press release. “We are confident that customers will benefit from the partnership's combined product capabilities, industry-leading applications and technical support, and enhanced infrastructure."

Through the acquisition, SPT will have the ability to expand its portfolio of liquid handling technologies as part of its larger portfolio of automation solutions for drug discovery, structural biology, genomics, cryo-EM, sample management, and biobanking. 

SPT Labtech’s Acquisition of Apricot Designs Expands Liquid Handling Technologies Portfolio

Leukocare, a German biotechnology company, announced on Jan. 11, 2021 that it has officially launched its development laboratories and offices in Milford, MA.

According to a company press release, the new US offices will give the company the ability to support its US-based customers on site while continuing to collaborate with its global team. The offices and laboratories are located on Rentschler Biopharma´s Milford premises, where the companies will continue to carry out their global strategic alliance that was established in 2017.

“I am delighted to announce the opening of Leukocare´s US site today,” said Michael Scholl, CEO at Leukocare, in the press release. “The company´s outstanding development over the last few years led to our desire of establishing a presence in the largest pharmaceuticals market worldwide. This strategic step enables us to be even closer to both our US and global customers and to better understand and serve their needs. Furthermore, the existing infrastructure of Rentschler in Milford—that we will partially make use of—allows us to start operations without any delay and, thus, makes Milford the perfect choice for our newly established US site. We therefore will continue to pursue our strategy of pushing boundaries of biopharmaceutical product development by combining innovative biostatistics, artificial intelligence, and vast formulation expertise with first-class analytics.”

The new US offices will give the company the ability to support its US-based customers on site while continuing to collaborate with its global team.