GSK to expand cell and gene therapy manufacturing capacity at CGT Catapult’s Stevenage site
pharmafile | March 11, 2021 | News story | |
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) will expand its clinical trial manufacturing capacity for advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMP) at Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult (CGT Catapult)’s facility in Stevenage, UK.
GSK will use the CGT Catapult facility to perform GMP cell processing that will accelerate its cell and gene therapy pipeline for clinical trials.
The UK has more than 90 ATMP therapy developers, and saw an increase of 48% in the UK GMP manufacturing space for cell and gene therapies in 2020. This growth also reflected the expansion of the CGT Catapult facility in Stevenage with six additional cleanrooms, which enabled the new agreement with drugs giant GSK.
The agreement between the company and CGT Catapult is another significant and successful step in the growth of cell and gene therapy activities in Stevenage, and the UK as a whole.
Building on the expertise already in place with current collaborators, the additive experience of GSK will allow for development of new capabilities to benefit future and current collaborators, already present and progressing their manufacturing onsite.
Tony Wood, Senior Vice President of Medicinal Science and Technology at GSK, commented: “The UK already has significant capabilities in cell and gene therapy, and this agreement illustrates how strategic investments by GSK can make them even stronger.
“Working more closely with CGT Catapult will help us advance our promising cell and gene therapy programmes, and bring these transformative medicines more quickly to the patients who desperately need them.”
CGT Catapult’s CEO Matthew Durdy also said: “The move by a leading pharmaceutical company like GSK to establish ATMP manufacturing capabilities at the CGT Catapult facility in Stevenage highlights the UK’s globally leading position for large and smaller organisations alike to develop, manufacture, and deliver cell and gene therapies.
“With a range of collaborators already based in the facility, we look forward to participating in the collective innovation onsite to pioneer the growth in scale of advanced therapy manufacturing.”
Darcy Jimenez
