Lonza in collaboration for pluripotent stem cell media development

Published: 5-Aug-2010

Aims to provide quality, scalable culture systems that meet stringent cellular therapies regulations


Lonza has entered a worldwide, in kind research collaboration agreement with Roslin Cells, a not-for-profit company established by the Roslin Institute based in Scotland, for the development of customised cell culture media and processes for the production of pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) to advance the field of cell therapy.

The agreement will merge the Roslin Cells’ expertise in developing cGMP grade pluripotent stem cells with Lonza’s expertise in primary cell media formulation. It will allow the companies to share technologies, know-how and other intellectual property to accelerate the development of industry-leading PSC culture media and systems for use in both research and clinical applications.

The main purpose of this collaboration is to provide those involved in both regenerative medicine research and in the production of clinical cell-based products with high-quality, scalable culture systems that meet the stringent regulations that govern cellular therapies.

‘There is a terrific fit between Roslin Cells and Lonza. We are committed to producing cells, which can be used in therapy. To achieve this, we need cell culture systems that meet regulatory GMP standards and can be used not only in research but also in cell production facilities,’ said Aidan Courtney, ceo, Roslin Cells. ‘Collaborating with Lonza will allow us to combine our expertise in the derivation and characterisation of pluripotent cells with their vast experience with cell culture media development and cell production.’

‘Roslin Cells brings a unique perspective to the challenge of commercialising therapeutic cells and gives Lonza access to Roslin’s pluripotent cell lines that are extraordinarily well characterised for application in the clinic,’ added Phil Vanek, head of innovation and business development, Lonza Bioscience. ‘Lonza’s competency in developing animal-free, fully characterised cGMP manufacturing grade culture media makes this research collaboration a natural fit for the further development of Lonza’s PSC research and clinical tools portfolio.‘

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