Multiply Labs used cobots to ship breakthrough ends in the manufacturing of cell therapies. Supply: Common Robots
Precision drugs, during which complicated therapies for most cancers and different situations are customized, is often pricey, limiting affected person entry to care. Multiply Labs Inc. has developed a “robotic biomanufacturing cluster” that it mentioned can scale back the price of life-saving cell therapies by 74%.
“Traditionally, cell and gene remedy manufacturing has been guide, nearly artisanal,” mentioned Fred Parietti, CEO of Multiply Labs. “Skilled scientists carry out a whole lot of duties by hand, from pipetting to shaking cells.”
San Francisco-based Multiply Labs has developed cloud-controlled automated methods for the manufacturing of individualized medicine at scale. Its workforce consists of mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, laptop scientists, software program engineers, and pharmaceutical scientists.
The firm mentioned its prospects embody a few of largest world organizations within the superior pharmaceutical manufacturing area.
Custom-made therapies want exact manufacturing
Customized cell therapies are sometimes used to deal with blood cancers similar to lymphoma and leukemia. In contrast to mass-produced medicine, they require a personalized dose from every affected person’s personal cells, making large-batch manufacturing unattainable. Such therapies are at the moment priced between $300,000 and $2 million per dose.
As well as, a single microbial contamination can render all the product unusable, resulting in pricey manufacturing failures.
Multiply Labs selected Common Robots A/S (UR) for its modular biomanufacturing cluster after intently evaluating a number of totally different collaborative robotic arms.
“UR was chosen attributable to their essential six-axis capabilities, unmatched pressure mode for delicate dealing with, seamless software program integration, sturdy group assist, and cleanroom compatibility,” mentioned Nadia Kreciglowa, head of robotics at Multiply Labs.
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UR cobots can replicate intricate processes
As printed in peer-reviewed research with the College of California, San Francisco (UCSF), Multiply Labs used a number of UR cobots working in parallel, stacked flooring to ceiling with collision avoidance, to deal with all the cell remedy manufacturing course of.
The brand new partnership, Common Robots’ first within the cell and gene remedy sector, illustrates the nice potential of collaborative robots in healthcare, in response to Jean-Pierre Hathout, president of Odense, Denmark-based UR, a Teradyne firm.
“By empowering Multiply Labs to duplicate intricate guide processes with excessive precision and scale, our cobots are redefining effectivity in pharmaceutical manufacturing,” he acknowledged. “Extra importantly, it’s driving vital price reductions whereas broadening entry to life-saving therapies. At its core, this partnership is a testomony to how robotics can elevate human functionality and serve crucial wants in drugs.”
Multiply Labs makes use of imitation studying for course of constancy
Multiply Labs cited its imitation studying know-how as enabling robots be taught from skilled human demonstrations fairly than dictating new processes.
“We ask the pharmaceutical firms that we work with to videotape their scientists performing the duties,” defined Parietti. “We then feed this knowledge to the robots, and the robots be taught to successfully replicate what scientists had been doing within the lab, simply extra effectively, extra repeatably, 24/7, and in parallel.”
He added that this strategy permits the UR cobots to “self-learn a whole lot of latest duties” with exponentially decrease engineering prices.
Multiply Labs’ system faithfully replicates guide processes with enhanced effectivity, repeatability, and sanitary situations, in response to the companions. This course of constancy can also be essential for regulatory compliance, probably saving many years and billions of {dollars} in re-approval prices by replicating current, already accredited processes, mentioned Dr. Jonathan Esensten, director of the Superior Biotherapy Middle at Sheba Medical Middle.
“As an alternative of ranging from sq. zero when it comes to drug approval, firms can now doc that that is the very same manufacturing course of. It simply occurs to be finished by a robotic.” he famous. Dr. Esensten, a former member of the UCSF college, labored with Multiply Labs to develop the system.
Multiply Labs makes use of imitation studying to coach robots tips on how to do new duties. Supply: Common Robots
Multiply Labs reduces prices, area utilization, contamination
“After we in contrast a conventional guide manufacturing course of for these cell therapies to a robotic course of doing the very same course of, we discovered a price discount of roughly 74%,” mentioned Esensten. “Rising T cells is one thing that now we have been doing for a very long time, however to have the robotic system do it with none human palms touching the cells all through the method, that may be a quantum leap when it comes to having the ability to manufacture these medicines at a decrease price and in a smaller area.”
Along with price financial savings, the robotic system can drastically enhance area utilization, Parietti mentioned. It could actually release sufficient area to retailer as much as 100x extra affected person doses per sq. foot of cleanroom in contrast with a typical guide course of. High quality and sterility are additionally considerably enhanced, he mentioned.
“Robots don’t breathe, and so they don’t contact stuff they’re not supposed to the touch,” noticed the Multiply Labs CEO.
“Whereas human dealing with led to contamination in a single case, we didn’t see any contamination within the robotic course of,” mentioned Dr. Esensten in reference to the UCSF research.
The Multiply Labs robotic cluster is already deployed at world pharmaceutical firms with outcomes now additionally documented in collaboration with scientists at Stanford College.
“This may actually change the way in which we take into consideration the manufacturing of those bespoke, customized cell and gene therapies for sufferers,” mentioned Parietti. “We are going to in the end enhance affected person entry globally by decreasing manufacturing prices, enabling distributed manufacturing worldwide of those life-saving therapies.”
