Upfront Chromatography Announces Development Agreement with Cangene Corporation

Upfront Chromatography A/S, the world’s leading developer of customised industrial-scale protein chromatography processes, has entered into an agreement with Cangene Corporation to develop a high-yield process for the isolation of human and equine IgG directly from blood plasma. Initial testing has demonstrated the successful capture of IgG from plasma using Upfront’s proprietary Rhobust™ processing platform. The project will incorporate a process-development and scale-up phase in order to produce material suitable for clinical trials and to determine the compatibility with Cangene’s manufacturing processes.

The implementation of Upfront’s Rhobust platform has the potential to minimise the process steps required for the isolation of IgG from blood plasma, and maximise yield and plant capacities at Cangene’s multi-product facilities.

“It is always exciting to investigate new technologies that may improve existing processes, and I look forward to seeing how Upfront’s Rhobust platform might be able to streamline our IgG processing and potentially increase product yield,” said Bill Bees, Senior Vice President, Operations, at Cangene. “Initial test results have been very promising. The Upfront team has demonstrated dedication and expertise that gives me confidence in their ability to optimise the integration of their technology with the type of process we use”.

Allan Lihme, Technical Director of Upfront Chromatography commented: “The Rhobust processing platform is adaptable to almost any process, and has the flexibility to be integrated into existing systems. Our technology is a great match for Cangene’s requirements, being designed to enable the purification of active proteins directly from blood plasma without the need for prior filtration”.