Berlin, Heidelberg, Germany, April 05, 2011/ b3c newswire / - Glycotope Biotechnology GmbH in Heidelberg, Germany, a full subsidiary of Berlin based Glycotope GmbH, has initiated the setup of further clean room facilities as a first step in the expansion of its GMP-production capacities. By mid 2011, the company will thus be able to produce 4kg of recombinant antibodies per year and up to 11 kg upon completion of works towards the end of 2011. In sum, additional 1400 m² of facility and office space will be created.
The delighted Dr. Steffen Goletz, founder and CEO of Glycotope GmbH comments: "In particular the expansion of our DSP (Downstream Processing) capacities now places us among the top providers of GMP-production for recombinant proteins and in particular antibodies in Germany".
About Glycotope and GlycotopeBiotechnology
Glycotope-Biotechnology, a full subsidiary of Berlin based Glycotope GmbH was founded upon the acquisition of the GMP-production unit of former Orpegen Pharma GmbH, together with the transfer of manufacturing lines of former Avesta GmbH in Kleinmachnow (Berlin). With combined more than 140 employees, the Glycotope Group now has grown to one of the largest Biotech organisations in Germany. Glycotope´s product portfolio now encompasses a variety of antibodies and non-antibody biologics, 3 of which are currently undergoing clinical trials. The pipeline includes both new antibodies for tumor therapy (e. g. PankoMab) as well as significantly improved versions of already marketed protein therapeutics (BioBetters). Glycotope´s underlying GlycoExpressTM technology of human cell lines facilitates the optimization of previously disregarded carbohydrate structures found on protein-based drugs (glycosylation). Thus biologics developed in GlycoExpressTM receive a fully human and optimized glycosylation, leading to a largely improved activity, an elongated half-life time and reduced immunogenicity and hence important therapeutic benefits for a significantly increased number of patients.