ProBioGen and City of Hope Announce Commercial License Agreement to Use AGE1.CR.pIX® Vaccine Manufacturing Platform for Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Vaccine

BERLIN, Germany and LOS ANGELES, USA, September 7, 2022 / B3C newswire / -- ProBioGen and City of Hope, one of the largest cancer research and treatment organizations in the United States, announced today a non-exclusive commercial license agreement that will allow City of Hope to manufacture its innovative synthetic MVA-based CMV vaccine using ProBioGen's cell-based and scalable viral manufacturing platform AGE1.CR.pIX.

Choosing the right production platform is a critical step for the development and manufacturing of a viral vaccine candidate. AGE1.CR.pIX has proven industrial and biological properties that are optimized for this purpose. It grows in suspension in a chemically-defined medium and has been designed to meet health authority guidelines. Therefore, it represents a modern and cost-effective production platform for large scale manufacture of vaccines for humans and animals. "Easily scalable plug and play technology for cost-effective vaccine production is important," said Dr. Volker Sandig, ProBioGen's Chief Scientific Officer. "We are delighted to support City of Hope with our transformative viral manufacturing platform to bring this vaccine into the clinic with the goal of protecting transplant recipients and immunocompromised patients from CMV infection and disease. The agreement underlines the increasing worldwide market acceptance of our AGE1.CR.pIX cell line as a true alternative to other methods," Sandig added.

Don J. Diamond, Ph.D., the vaccine's principal investigator and co-inventor of the patents covering City of Hope's proprietary synthetic MVA vaccine platform: "City of Hope aims to accelerate our CMV vaccine program. AGE1.CR presents a versatile and robust manufacturing platform that will support a productive and flexible process. Our vaccine is truly unique as it is the only one in development that has been purposefully designed to be used to prevent congenital infections or control transplant-related infections."

Financial terms of the commercial license to use the AGE1.CR.pIX, including potential clinical milestones and future tiered royalties were not disclosed.

AboutProBioGen
ProBioGen is a Berlin-based specialist for developing and manufacturing complex therapeutic glycoproteins. Combining both state-of-the-art development services, based on ProBioGen's CHO.RiGHT® expression and manufacturing platform, together with intelligent product-specific technologies yields biologics with optimized properties. Rapid and integrated cell line and process development, comprehensive analytical development and following reliable GMP manufacturing is performed by a highly skilled and experienced team. All services and technologies are embedded in a total quality management system to assure compliance with international ISO
and GMP standards (EMA/FDA).
ProBioGen provides modern manufacturing solutions for viral vectors with its continuous AGE1.CR® duck cell line,a vaccine platform with MVA-CR19 and renders technology support in gene therapy and vaccine development. ProBioGen has been operational for more than 25 years. At three locations in Berlin, more than 250 employees contribute to the creation of new therapies in medicine and groundbreaking innovations worldwide through their creative and meticulous work. ProBioGen's growth strategy is driven by the expansion of the value chain as well as through diversification of the offerings, while the focus is strict on enabling the development of biopharmaceuticals for tomorrow.

For more information about ProBioGen, follow us on LinkedIn.

About City of Hope
City of Hope's mission is to deliver the cures of tomorrow to the people who need them today. Founded in 1913, City of Hope has grown into one of the largest cancer research and treatment organizations in the U.S. and one of the leading research centers for diabetes and other life-threatening illnesses. As an independent, National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, City of Hope brings a uniquely integrated model to patients, spanning cancer care, research and development, academics and training, and innovation initiatives. Research and technology developed at City of Hope has been the basis for numerous breakthrough cancer medicines, as well as human synthetic insulin and monoclonal antibodies. A leader in bone marrow transplantation and immunotherapy, such as CAR T cell therapy, City of Hope's personalized treatment protocols help advance cancer care throughout the world.
With a goal of expanding access to the latest discoveries and leading-edge care to more patients, families and communities, City of Hope's growing national system includes its main Los Angeles campus, a network of clinical care locations across Southern California, a new cancer center in Orange County, California and Cancer Treatment Centers of America. City of Hope's affiliated family of organizations includes Translational Genomics Research Institute and AccessHopeTM.

For more information about City of Hope, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Contacts

ProBioGen
Dr. Gabriele Schneider
Chief Business Officer
cmo@probiogen.de                                     

ProBioGen Press Contact
Sarah Wandrey
Corporate Communications
press@probiogen.de

City of Hope Contact
Letisia Marquez
Media Relations Manager
lemarquez@coh.org

Keywords: Humans; Animals; Cytomegalovirus; Viral Vaccines; Cytomegalovirus Infections; Transplant Recipients; Immunocompromised Host; Cell Line; Cell Culture Techniques; Culture Media; Cell Proliferation; Cell Line Development; Cells, Cultured; Ducks; Viruses; Vaccines; Virus Cultivation; Biological Products; Productivity; Technology; Bioreactors; Commerce; United States; Germany

Published by B3C newswire