TERUMO BCT PARTNERS WITH CIRA FOUNDATION TO DEVELOP AUTOMATED IPS CELL MANUFACTURING

Terumo Blood and Cell Technologies (Terumo BCT) and CiRA Foundation, a public interest organization for the transfer of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells to industry, announced a partnership designed to propel the broad use of iPS cells for a range of new therapies. By leveraging CiRA Foundation's leading iPS cell knowledge and Terumo BCT's enabling technologies and cell therapy manufacturing know-how, the companies seek to develop an automated and clinically relevant workflow for iPS cell-derived therapies, a potential turning point for the cell and gene therapy (CGT) field.

iPS cells hold enormous potential for cell-based therapies, as they can be an unlimited source of starting material and can be reprogrammed to nearly any functional cell type, such as neuron cells, cardiac muscle, and blood cells. However, the lack of scalability to produce sufficient cells for clinical doses currently impedes progress into clinical applications, since these complex protocols require expert handling and precise control over weeks or months. To solve these issues, the CiRA Foundation is working on a project titled "my iPS Project," in which Terumo BCT is participating.

Together, the organizations aim to create a closed, automated, integrated process that can consistently produce high-quality iPS and iPS-derived cells at scale on Terumo BCT's Quantum Flex™ Cell Expansion System​. The companies will further increase manufacturing efficiency and control using digital technology. Terumo BCT will share expertise with CiRA Foundation scientists as they automate manual processes to expand and differentiate iPS cells. The goals are to make iPS cell manufacturing clinically viable, accessible and cost-effective and, ultimately, to help expedite clinical uptake of iPS cell-derived therapies.

CiRA Foundation ​produces iPS cells for academics and companies through collaborations that expand translational iPS cell knowledge globally. There are more than ten ongoing clinical trials for the CiRA Foundation's iPS cell-based therapies, with the potential for many more.