Translational research for advanced therapies involves the application of cell- and gene-based scientific discoveries and knowledge generated in the laboratory to the development and large-scale production of innovative therapeutics to be used in clinical settings.
The intricacies of manufacturing and characterizing advanced therapies present inherent challenges in maintaining product consistency throughout the research and development, preclinical, clinical, and commercialization phases. The use of suboptimal materials and processes in the discovery stage can significantly disrupt progression to later clinical stages, leading to timeline delays and increased costs.
At Thermo Fisher Scientific, our translational research services help produce small-scale molecular biology, viral vector, and cell therapy materials utilizing scaled-down processes that mirror cGMP workflows. This helps to proactively mitigate risk and enhance the transition from discovery to clinical research and ultimately commercialization, enabling an accelerated timeline from bench to bedside.
When embarking on a new cell- and gene-based therapy development project, it’s crucial to keep the end goal in mind: producing larger-scale, GMP-level batches that satisfy regulatory requirements to accelerate patient access to life-saving therapies. Translational services help achieve this goal through the early establishment of standardized processes and qualifiable assays that avoid delays during the transition to larger-scale, GMP-level production.
Translational services offer:
Our translational research services generate material for research use only (RUO), not for IND-enabling studies or diagnostics purposes.
Our molecular biology services support viral vector and cell therapy translational services to ensure high-quality/quantity materials generation and compliance with regulatory requirements. Specifically, our services include:
Large-scale plasmid DNA manufacturing services
We produce plasmid DNA for a wide variety of R&D, clinical, and commercial bioprocessing applications. Plasmids can be manufactured by leveraging our proven platform process or via a customized production process. We can tailor our services for your unique molecule to improve its performance efficiency and scale up as needed.
Learn more about our plasmid DNA manufacturing services here.
Our viral vector translational services use standardized methods and scaled-down, cGMP-compatible processes for adeno-associated virus (AAV) and lentiviral (LV) production. Plasmids that are designed and engineered for purpose through molecular biology services are transfected in clonal, documented, and qualified HEK293 cell lines. The cells are grown in suspension and serum-free cell culture (up to 10L). Throughout the process, qualifiable analytics with controls and standards are utilized to characterize the viral vectors.
Our viral vector translational services include:
End-to-end viral vector development and manufacturing services
In addition to viral vector translational services, we provide support for all other aspects of the viral vector-based therapy development and manufacturing journey. That includes process development, clinical and commercial manufacturing, fill/finish services, regulatory service, and cold chain logistics. Learn more about our end-to-end viral vector development and manufacturing solutions and 20+ years of industry experience here.
Our dedicated advanced therapy research and development team of 60+ members — including more than 20 PhD scientists spanning diverse disciplines such as virology, biochemistry, molecular biology, cell biology, and microbiology — is committed to advancing the cell and gene therapy development and manufacturing landscape.
Our mission involves the meticulous engineering of next-generation viral and non-viral vector, cell therapy, and plasmid DNA platforms, as well as developing more precise and qualifiable analytical assays. We are also establishing new benchmarks for quality standards and extending regulatory support for cGMP manufacturing.
Our industry-leading knowledge and expertise is also utilized to consult and support early-stage developers through our translational research services.
Gain insight into our team's recent scientific publications:
Our 32,000-square-foot facility is located at the heart of San Diego’s buzzing biotechnology hub. The state-of-the-art site supports molecular biology, viral vector, and cell therapy translational services, and also performs CDMO R&D studies.
Fact Sheet
Translational Services Fact Sheet
Through Translational Research Services, our interdisciplinary team of scientific experts offer end-to-end support to advanced therapy developers, to generate relevant materials and help ensure a seamless transition from discovery to clinical phase manufacturing.
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Next-generation analytics in viral vector manufacturing
In this webinar, our analytics experts will provide an in-depth overview of the critical role of analytics in the viral vector production workflow, and talk about pain points like method accuracy, workflow complexity, and throughput limitations. In addition, case studies will demonstrate how innovative methodologies can improve analytical quality and reproducibility.
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Patheon Translational Services Advance Cell and Gene Therapies from Research to Clinical Trials
Learn how our translational research services, housed in our San Diego facility, can take cell and gene therapies from preclinical to clinical.
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Strategies to accelerate drug development through harmonization of early and late stage processes
This technical article presents a harmonized and streamlined approach established at Thermo Fisher Scientific for manufacturing AAV and LV vectors for discovery research using technologies and processes mirroring current GMP platforms.