China Biotech Services (08037.HK): LongYao Bio Enters Strategic Partnership with GE Healthcare to Accelerate Industrialization of Cell Therapy Drugs

Original Title: China Biotech Services (08037): Longyao Biology and GE Healthcare Enter Strategic Partnership to Jointly Accelerate the Industrialization of Cell Therapy Drugs Source: Zhitong Finance

Zhitong Finance APP News: China Biotech Services Holdings Limited (08037) announced that on July 17, 2019, Shanghai Longyao Biological Technology Co., Ltd. (“Shanghai Longyao,” a non-wholly owned subsidiary of the Company) entered into a Process Development Agreement and a Strategic Cooperation Agreement with GE Healthcare Trade Development (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. (“GE Healthcare”). The two parties will jointly develop advanced, automated, closed-system manufacturing processes for personalized, customizable, and multi-reconfigurable solutions adapted to autologous and allogeneic cells, so as to accelerate the upgrade of cell-based therapies from research to industrialization. Attendees at the signing ceremony included Ye Shengqin, President of Longyao Biological; Fan Bin, Vice President; Wang Xin, Deputy General Manager; Chen Qi, Global Business Head of Cell Therapy Enterprise Solutions at GE Healthcare; Ni Zhuoyu, Asia-Pacific Technical Lead; and Gao Geng, Sales Manager.

At the ceremony, President Ye Shengqin welcomed the delegation from GE Healthcare and introduced the company’s achievements in recent years in the research, development, and translation of immune cell technologies, including CAR-T.

With the rise of immune cell therapies represented by CAR-T and TCR-T, the number of clinical studies on immune cells has surged in recent years, with an average annual growth rate approaching 40%. However, due to the unique nature of living cells, cell therapy products are fundamentally different from traditional small-molecule chemical drugs and large-molecule biologics. Personalized cell and gene therapy products, exemplified by CAR-T, involve unprecedented technological complexity, manufacturing challenges, and stringent product requirements in the biopharmaceutical industry—ranging from GMP-grade, scalable, high-quality plasmid and recombinant virus production to the manufacture of biopharmaceutical-grade CAR-T products. Only by thoroughly improving manual operational procedures from the laboratory research and exploration stage and establishing automated and standardized production systems can efficient and safe clinical application trials of CAR-T products be realized.

Mr. Ye Shengqin, President, stated that GE Healthcare holds advantages in biopharmaceutical process development. The strong collaboration with GE Healthcare will further accelerate the regulatory submission of Longyao Bio’s CAR-T therapy. He expressed hope that both parties will standardize their cooperation, ensure smooth progress, and ultimately achieve the expected outcomes.

Chen Qi, Global Head of Business for GE Healthcare’s Enterprise Solutions in Cell Therapy, introduced the project planning and future areas of collaboration. Chen stated that the development project was scheduled for formal delivery in October 2019. In addition to process development, GE Healthcare would provide Shanghai Longyao Biological Technology Co., LTD. with GMP-compliant training services, modular cell processing equipment, and automation and digital management capabilities. These offerings aim to help Longyao Bio optimize its research-stage processes to meet large-scale production requirements, further enhance efficiency by simplifying and integrating manufacturing workflows and increasing automation levels, thereby accelerating the clinical translation and commercialization of its cell therapy products.

In future collaborations, Shanghai Longyao Biological Technology Co., Ltd. and GE Healthcare will adhere to the principles of strategic alliance and complementary advantages, jointly promoting the industrialization of CAR-T cell therapy drugs in China.

Shanghai Longyao Biological Technology Co., LTD. is dedicated to the research and development, technological translation, product registration, clinical application research, and promotion of tumor immunocyte technologies. Led by Professor Fu Yangxin and Professor Yang Xuanming from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, along with a robust team of scientists, the company has established 14 product pipelines focusing on immune effector cells (such as CAR-T and TCR-T), immune-activated cells, and immune-regulatory cells for the treatment of malignant hematologic tumors and solid tumors. The company has accumulated numerous original achievements and filed multiple patents for key technologies. In July 2018, China Biotech Services Holdings Limited (Stock Code: 8037.HK) signed an agreement to acquire a 67% equity stake in Longyao Biology. This listed company, strategically positioned in precision diagnostics and precision therapy, is committed to building a future biotechnology platform and will provide substantial financial and resource support to ensure the development of Longyao Biology.

GE Healthcare, which integrates data and data analytics across hardware, software, and biotechnology domains, is the healthcare business unit of GE Company (NYSE: GE), with a business scale reaching $18 billion. As a leading provider of medical imaging equipment, GE Healthcare boasts a rich history spanning over 100 years and employs more than 50,000 people in over 100 countries worldwide. The company is committed to transforming the healthcare industry by delivering better services to healthcare providers and patients.