WuXi Biologics said the expansion is in response to growing market demand and will enable it to provide cGMP manufacturing services for products derived from microbial fermentation

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WuXi Biologics expands Hangzhou facility. (Credit: CDC on Unsplash)

Chinese biologics technology company WuXi Biologics has expanded its MFG14 facility in Hangzhou to manufacture microbial-derived products.

The contract research, development and manufacturing organization (CRDMO) has been conducting chemistry, manufacturing, and controls (CMC) projects at the facility, since early 2022.

With the expansion, the company is enabled to provide cGMP manufacturing services for products derived from microbial fermentation.

WuXi Biologics said the expansion is in response to growing market demand.

WuXi Biologics CEO Chris Chen said: “The fast growth of enzymes, plasmids, vaccines and biological therapies has driven the increasing demand for microbial fermentation capacity.

“Over the past several years, WuXi Biologics has assembled an experienced team with in-depth expertise and insights for microbial-derived product modalities.

“Now with the successful initiation of cGMP manufacturing at the MFG14 facility in Hangzhou, our end-to-end microbial services will enable our partners to accelerate the development and manufacturing of these innovative products for the benefit of patients worldwide.”

WuXi Biologics offers CMC services, including strain development, process and analytical development, cGMP manufacturing, and QC release, through its microbial platform.

Its MFG14 facility features four cGMP manufacturing lines with 30L to 2,000L fermenters, along with downstream processing and drug substance formulation and filling capabilities.

As part of the expansion, the company is leveraging microbial expression systems such as E. coli and yeast, for rapid and cost-effective production across multiple modalities.

The modalities include enzymes, antibody fragments, recombinant proteins, virus-like particle (VLP), and plasmid DNA.

In November 2020, WuXi Biologics launched the Biologics Integrated Innovation Centre in Hangzhou, China, for biological products based on microbial fermentation technologies.

The centralised facilities that offer its microbial platform are all located within the Biologics Integrated Innovation Centre.

In a separate development, the Chinese company reportedly got closer to getting off the US unverified list, which wiped out around HK$77bn ($9.9bn) off its market value.

The Chinese authorities allowed a US export control officer to conduct inspections on at least one company in the city of Wuxi last week, reported Reuters citing a US Commerce Department official.