Piramal, Ajinomoto team on ADC development and manufacturing

Piramal Pharma Solutions, a global contract development and manufacturing organization, and Ajinomoto Bio-Pharma Services announced a strategic collaboration to support development and manufacturing of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) using AJICAP technology — a set of proprietary technologies designed to facilitate the creation of site-specific ADCs and linkers.

Under the agreement, Piramal will manufacture ADCs using Ajinomoto’s site-specific conjugation platform, while both companies will refer customers to each other for development and manufacturing services. A separate material transfer agreement will enable technology transfer, equipping Piramal with the capabilities and personnel to produce AJICAP-based products, the companies said.

The collaboration is intended to streamline development and scale-up of ADCs by integrating conjugation technology with GMP manufacturing. According to the announcement, combining platform-based conjugation with established manufacturing infrastructure is expected to support process consistency, tech transfer, and commercial production across the ADC lifecycle.

The companies said the approach is designed to improve manufacturing efficiency and enable development of more targeted therapies with controlled conjugation processes.

The agreement builds on broader investments by Piramal to expand ADC and drug product manufacturing capacity across its global network, including fill-finish and high-potency API capabilities in the U.S. and drug product expansion in India to support flexible supply chain strategies. Ajinomoto has also expanded its ADC platform through licensing agreements with biopharma partners to support research and manufacturing of next-generation conjugates.