BlueRock Therapeutics says it has developed an automated system for high-throughput auditing of this relatively new class of therapeutics. According to BlueRock, the system, which accommodates cell culture, liquid handling, and processing with small volume samples, is designed to fill a gap between the need for solutions and those currently available.
“In modalities like small molecules, platforms are more or less plug-and-play and so are the systems used for automation, but there’s been a gap as people have moved to this new modality,” explains Ronnie Lum, PhD, director of analytical and quality control.
To contribute to the growing cell therapy ecosystem, Lum and his team have adapted readily available tools and systems to the smaller batch volumes produced in cell therapies.
“This field is new,” he says. “We want to be a pioneer and really push the envelope of where we can go with automation. Specifically in the analytical audit space, there aren’t many solutions out there, so we’ve really put the effort in.”
The customized system has been designed and built in collaboration with Hamilton Robotics and involves adapting the company’s existing analytical systems to liquid handling and, they hope, high-throughput automation with the aim of scaling up to commercial volumes in this new field.
The company hopes their new system will help them reach the market faster with their own pipeline of therapies and can be adapted easily afterward to the processes involved with their new products.
In general, they hope these technologies will drive down the cost of analytics across the cell therapy industry by reducing the sample volumes needed for testing and, thus, the cost of reagents used in complex assays.
Going forward, BlueRock Therapeutics urges other companies to join them in developing systems to address technological gaps. “We’re willing to push the boundaries by investing in these technologies and trying to innovate.”
