💰 Current costs for mAbs are around $50–100 per gram. Reducing this to $10 is crucial for global access.
🔄 Hybrid processing methods offer flexibility. They can significantly cut expenses while maintaining product quality.
🚀 Embracing intelligent manufacturing and real-time monitoring will enhance efficiency in mAb production.
Introduction:
The emergence of single-use continuous bioprocessing presents a significant opportunity to lower the production costs of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), which are essential therapeutic agents but often prohibitively expensive. Current manufacturing methods, including traditional batch processing, have been criticized for their high costs and inefficiencies. This article discusses the potential of continuous processing to make mAb production more feasible and accessible, especially in low- and middle-income countries.
- Traditional mAb production methods are costly and challenging to scale, hindering global accessibility to these therapies.
- Single-use continuous (perfusion) bioprocessing can reduce production costs by as much as 35% for moderate production volumes, thereby improving economic viability.
- Cost savings from continuous processing diminish at higher production scales (1 to 3 metric tons), requiring multiple parallel systems.
- Hybrid production strategies that combine single-use and traditional methods can significantly optimize efficiency and profitability.
- Future advancements in AI and real-time process monitoring are expected to enhance production strategies, ensuring product quality while reducing costs.
Conclusion:
The transition from traditional bioprocessing techniques to single-use continuous manufacturing holds the potential to make mAb therapies more economically viable. Achieving a reduction in production costs, alongside preserving product quality and manufacturing efficiency, requires tailored approaches. As the biotechnology sector moves towards intelligent and adaptable manufacturing systems, there is optimism for broader access and affordability of mAb treatments worldwide.
