BD Joins Consortium to Accelerate Technology Development and Lower the Costs in Cell and Gene Therapy Manufacturing

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could reach a point in medical history where disease can be cured without drugs? A step in that direction has been taken this year by BD, which has joined a consortium of over 20 companies with the aim of pooling knowledge in cell and gene therapy.

This is the innovative move by Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult (CGT Catapult), which has brought together leading companies to help accelerate technology development, and lower costs in cell and gene therapy manufacturing. The consortium will assess multiple process analytical technologies (PAT) which are either new or routinely used in other industries..

Reliance on drugs to cure illness has been a staple of healthcare for more than 100 years, but advances in cell and gene therapies mean that personalised cell or tissue-based advanced therapy medicinal products are becoming widely available to patients, but the industries need to do more in terms of sharing information, improving processes, and reducing costs.

BD is delighted to be part of the group and sees the partnership as a chance to work with cell therapy developers and ultimately help make cell therapy products more affordable, accessible and commercialised quickly.

Kate Easten, BD BDB clinical product manager, said: “We wanted to partner with CGT Catapult because they work with cell therapy developers. Ultimately, we want patients to be able to access the best therapy they deserve.

We are all bringing different technologies and expertise. At BD, we know we have the expertise and technology to really make a positive contribution to the PAT consortium. The BD FACSLyric™ Flow Cytometer and BD Horizon™ Dri-Chroma products will be used in this project.

“This is a massively growing industry and it’s where the future of medicine is heading. We are really excited to bring our expertise and technology to help drive commercialisation of these incredibly innovative and life-changing advanced therapeutics.”

Daniela Delledonne, BD EMEA VP and general manager of BDB, said: “This work will have a global reach as BD Europe is supporting BD UKI. This is the first time we’ve been involved in something like this for cell therapy. We are keen to be part of this venture as our collaborative work will help drive awareness, as well as the adoption of BD solutions in the cell therapy field.

“The initiative aligns with our mission, to advance the world of health. We saw capabilities with CGT Catapult in that they are very similar to us in that respect. We have solutions which can help in this process and solutions to help collaborators.”

Matthew Durdy, Chief Executive Officer of CGT Catapult, said: “The PAT Consortium is crucial to addressing the UK ATMP industry’s need for greater analytical capabilities, drawing together leaders from all over the sector to share knowledge and expertise. The partnership with BD will provide access to industry-leading innovative flow cytometry technology and expertise that will greatly advance the insights developed for cell characterisation, providing the potential to accelerate advanced therapy products across the entire industry.”

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