- Cambrex has expanded its Snapdragon Chemistry API facility in Waltham, Massachusetts by 20% with a new GMP manufacturing suite.
- The investment strengthens peptide development and manufacturing capabilities using SPPS, LPPS, and hybrid approaches.
Cambrex, a global contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO), announced that its subsidiary Snapdragon Chemistry has expanded its active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) facility in Waltham, Massachusetts. The expansion adds a new GMP manufacturing suite and increases the overall site footprint by 20%.
The new suite features an ISO-7 cleanroom for preparative HPLC chromatography and lyophilisation, as well as cold storage for raw materials and a dedicated product storage area. With these additions, Snapdragon Chemistry can now support peptide projects from development through to GMP manufacturing using solid-phase peptide synthesis (SPPS), liquid-phase peptide synthesis (LPPS), or hybrid methods.
Dr. Eric Fang, General Manager at Snapdragon Chemistry, said: “We designed this facility with a three-step strategy in mind for the development of peptide drug candidates. We start with automated SPPS technology for proof-of-concept. In parallel, we optimise the process using LPPS synthesised technology to accelerate development and reduce manufacturing cost. We can then transfer the process to our large manufacturing facilities, such as Charles City, Iowa, to produce materials in traditional large batch reactors, significantly reducing the cost of those drugs.”
The company highlighted that LPPS technology reduces reliance on specialised solid-phase reactors, lowers solvent demand, and limits the need for excess reagents compared to conventional SPPS processes. Cambrex noted that LPPS enables the use of its broader manufacturing network, including 1.4 million litres of capacity, for scalable peptide production.
