DSM Pharmaceutical Products, the custom manufacturing and technology business of Royal DSM, announced on Jan. 15 that it has signed a non-exclusive license agreement with Amgen Inc. for access to DSM's proprietary XD high cell density process patents.
Karen King, President of DSM Biologics, commented “We are pleased to enter into this license agreement with Amgen, a global leader in biopharmaceutical drug development and manufacturing. We believe our proprietary XD technology will play an important role in the next generation of biopharmaceutical manufacturing." XD technology is a highly intensified cell culture process with typical titer achievement of 8-to-10 times higher compared to current standard biomanufacturing processes. For some products, titer improvements of up to 15 times have been achieved. It is widely applicable for multiple biological products including proteins, fusion proteins and antibodies, and has been successfully employed across the full spectrum of mammalian cell systems.
Alexander Wessels, President and CEO of DSM Pharmaceutical Products also commented, "DSM continuously strives to provide its clients with added value through our innovative service and technology offerings." With typical XD titer improvement of 8-10X, a 500L bioreactor can provide a DSM licensee with the same amount of drug substance as a 5000L stainless steel bioreactor at an overall lower cost. DSM's proprietary technologies drive down cost, processing times and capital requirements while increasing flexibility to meet market demand for life saving medications. XD has also shown impressive results for biosimilars and innovator drugs with respect to both volume and product quality.