2012年3月12日，EMD Millipore公司与加拿大再生医学商业化中心（Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine ,CCRM）签订合作协议，共同开发基于生物反应器的干细胞优化培养。他们将开发一种监测及控制方法，使贴壁生长的人类多能干细胞在EMD Millipore公司的Mobius CellReady搅拌罐生物反应器中强劲地生长。最终，该项目将交付一种可商业化的试剂盒，包括干细胞微载体生物反应器培养试剂及相关的方法学。
"随着药物开发及临床应用中干细胞需求的不断增长，将干细胞的潜能高效地转化到现实干细胞的治疗，需要有严格控制条件下的工业化生产，"EMD Millipore公司干细胞项目总监Robert Shaw说道。"目前，干细胞的生产通常是使用成碟的二维组织培养容器，这是一个昂贵且费力的过程。此次合资项目，将解决这些难题，并促进干细胞的优化、大规模培养，这能够加速干细胞疗法进入临床。"
CCRM是一个加拿大非盈利组织，由加拿大政府的卓越项目中心网络及6个伙伴机构资助。它支持开发新的技术，加速干细胞及基于生物材料产品的商业化发展。CCRM将在多伦多班廷研究所的产品开发机构应用EMD Millipores公司的Mobius CellReady搅拌罐生物反应器。
EMD Millipore and the Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine Collaborate to Optimize Conditions for Large-scale Stem Cell Cultivation
3/12/2012 12:37:28 PM
March 12, 2012, Billerica, MA, Toronto, ON, — EMD Millipore, the Life Science division of Merck KGaA of Germany, and the Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine (CCRM) today announced a collaboration to develop optimized conditions for bioreactor-based cultivation of stem cells.
This joint project will focus on the development of a proprietary monitoring and control methodology, enabling robust growth of adherent human pluripotent stem cells in EMD Millipore’s Mobius® CellReady stirred tank bioreactor. Ultimately, the project will deliver a commercially available kit containing reagents and associated methodologies for bioreactor culture of stem cells on microcarriers.
“As the demand for stem cells used in drug discovery and clinical applications grows, effectively translating the promise of stem cells into therapeutic reality will require large-scale, industrialized production under tightly controlled conditions,” states Robert Shaw, Commercial Director of EMD Millipore’s Stem Cell Initiative. “At this time, production is typically achieved using stacks of 2D tissue culture vessels, which is an expensive and labor intensive process. This joint project will address those challenges and facilitate optimized, large-scale cultivation of stem cells which can accelerate the progress of therapies into the clinic.”
“When CCRM was created, we had industry partnerships like this in mind,” says Michael May, CEO of the Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine. “We are delighted to have EMD Millipore as our first project partner. Their production expertise and technologies will help CCRM to develop products that will benefit industry, academia, and the patient community. We appreciate that EMD Millipore has commissioned us to undertake this project and recognizes our strength in bioprocessing engineering.”
CCRM will be employing EMD Millipore’s Mobius® CellReady stirred tank bioreactor in its product development facility at the University of Toronto’s Banting Institute. The work began in February 2012.
About EMD Millipore
EMD Millipore is the Life Science division of Merck KGaA of Germany and offers a broad range of innovative, performance products, services and business relationships that enable our customers' success in research, development and production of biotech and pharmaceutical drug therapies. Through dedicated collaboration on new scientific and engineering insights, and as one of the top three R&D investors in the Life Science Tools industry, EMD Millipore serves as a strategic partner to customers and helps advance the promise of life science.
Headquartered in Billerica, Massachusetts, the division has around 10,000 employees, operations in 67 countries and 2010 revenues of $2.2 billion. EMD Millipore is known as Merck Millipore outside of the U.S. and Canada.
Note: Merck KGaA or Merck shall mean Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany.
About the Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine (CCRM)
CCRM, a Canadian not-for-profit organization funded by the Government of Canada’s Networks of Centres of Excellence program and six institutional partners, supports the development of technologies that accelerate the commercialization of stem cell- and biomaterials-based products. A network of academics, industry and entrepreneurs, CCRM translates scientific discoveries into marketable products for patients. CCRM launched in Toronto’s Discovery District on June 14, 2011.