Cytovance and ExcellGene: A Strategic Collaboration for Biologics Development

• ExcellGene SA, a Swiss biotech service provider, has entered a strategic collaboration with Cytovance Biologics, a US-based CDMO.

• The partnership aims to advance biopharmaceutical development by providing ExcellGene’s transposon technologies to Cytovance’s biopharma customers.

• The collaboration is expected to deliver a higher yield range of up to 10 g/L, helping customers advance their therapeutics from upstream development to clinical and commercial scale operations.

ExcellGene SA, a Swiss biotech service provider specializing in mammalian cell line development, has entered a strategic collaboration with Cytovance Biologics, a contract manufacturing organization (CDMO) based in the U.S. The partnership aims to advance large molecule biologics development and manufacture.

The collaboration leverages Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO) and Human Embryonic Kidney (HEK) cells for mammalian cell lines for recombinant protein production and biological research. ExcellGene’s custom CHO and HEK cell lines can be used to optimize protein quality, quantity, development timelines, and scalability for biomanufacturing through custom engineering to the specific requirements of a protein.

By combining these engineered cell lines with Cytovance’s cGMP manufacturing expertise, the companies expect to deliver a higher yield range of up to 10 g/L. This will help customers advance their therapeutics from upstream development to clinical and commercial scale operations.

Maria Wurm, CEO of ExcellGene SA, expressed her excitement about the partnership. “We are thrilled to partner with Cytovance Biologics, a company that shares our commitment to excellence and innovation in biopharmaceutical manufacturing,” she said. “Our top priority is to provide seamless services and cost-effective solutions tailormade for our clients’ needs.”

Stephanie Wickham, PhD, Senior Director of Technology at Cytovance, also shared her thoughts on the collaboration. “Coupling our organizations’ respective 50+ years of experience in delivering solutions to the industry, we are very much looking forward to shepherding critical proteins expressed in one of ExcellGene’s exceptional host cell lines through process development and eventually, into our 2000L tanks,” she said. “This partnership is part of our intentional effort to expand our ‘best of breed’ network and build a robust selection of cell and strain options so that our clients can always find the perfect fit for their target protein.”