Funding has been a challenge for biotech companies recently, according to Christine Vannais of FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies, but companies can ease some of the funding pressure by turning to a CDMO to help them with clinical and commercial manufacturing. Vannais shared with Rebecca Willumson of Fierce Biotech some of the ways companies are creating value in the biotech space and the innovations FUJIFILM is bringing to the sector.
Vannais believes that companies with platforms to support multiple assets instead of single assets stand to win over more investors. It’s one way biotech companies are creating value in the market and attracting funding. There’s still room for innovation, notably in developing end-to-end systems to support new modalities. FUJIFILM Diosynth’s proprietary skid is one example of this kind of innovation. Designed for downstream processing, the skid should help speed up manufacturing processes to get products to patients faster.
Rebecca Willumson:
Hi there, my name's Rebecca Williams and I'm the publisher of Fierce BioTech. And I'm here today with Christine Vannais, Chief Operating Officer at FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies. Christine, thanks so much for joining me.
Christine Vannais:
Hi, Rebecca. Thanks for having me.
Rebecca Willumson:
So before we begin, can you tell me a little bit about your background and your role?
Christine Vannais:
Yeah, happy to. Currently I am the COO of the RTP location for FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies, located of course in North Carolina and very close to our new expansion in Holly Springs. I've been with the firm for 12 years and prior to this role I was responsible for the manufacturing and, in the RDP location, that is microbial and cell culture 24/7 clinical and commercial manufacturing.
Rebecca Willumson:
Good. So getting us started, where do you see the biggest need for innovation in the biotech industry?
Christine Vannais:
Yeah, there are quite a few needs, but if the biggest need, I think with the new modalities that are coming out, ensuring that we have not only the technology, but the end-to-end system to support the new modalities. And that's going to have to be quite flexible because there are so many new modalities that are out there. And as a CDMO we can help enable the development and manufacturing, but the discovery happens upfront by the sponsors and the clients. And the innovation that we can bring is about speed to clinic, robust process characterization, knowledge of the molecule, helping with the regulatory challenges that there might be with the new modalities, all of that, ensuring they get to the patients who need the most.
Rebecca Willumson:
So how have you seen companies create value given the market?
Christine Vannais:
Biotech companies have value in their assets, their platforms and their technology. And I think the platforms is an area that's pretty interesting. It's not just one asset or the lead asset that is getting funding, but it is if they have a platform and multiple assets are following behind. So whether it's investing in that, is a really important element. If that lead candidate makes it through the pipeline process, you have a terrific platform and if there's challenges with that lead, it can slow down your overall platform or pipeline. And if I think about, as a CDMO, the role that we can play is the funding for these assets is very expensive and takes a lot of funding. And right now funding is a challenge, of course. We heard that a lot through the conference today, of some great presentations on that. But rather than investing in the development in a manufacturing facility that's bespoke, they have the opportunity to come to CDMOs to help with the clinical and then ultimately, hopefully, the commercial manufacturing, to take some of the capital burden off initially, while those assets are being evaluated and, really, waiting on that clinical data to come back.
Rebecca Willumson:
So is there an example of an innovation that FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies has recently implemented?
Christine Vannais:
Yeah, we have a proprietary skid that has been designed and implemented in use for downstream processing, chromatography and also TFF. So a single use unit operations skid that has been deployed in our UK facility for clinical GMP manufacturing. And this is really an innovative piece of what we can offer, because this skid offers a lot of flexibility moving forward, also harmonization of those unit operations across the site. So what that ends up doing is getting clinical processes manufactured faster, ultimately getting to the patients faster. But also, it's really cool these skids can be connected together and if you start with the 500 liter cell culture process and then have all of your downstream connected with this SymphonX rig, we're calling that the MaruX Continuous Manufacturing Process. So you can use it as a standalone rig, which is great. We have control of the supply chain for the single use, disposable flow kit. But when you connect them together with the cell culture process up front, that continuous manufacturing is really innovative and is a great option to bring to our clients.
Rebecca Willumson:
Oh, that's very interesting. Well, that's all the questions that I have for you today, but thank you so much for joining me. I appreciate the conversation.
Christine Vannais:
Thank you for having me.