Transcript for:
Production of Biologic Medicines Overview

♪♪ Narrator: BIOLOGIC MEDICINES ARE PROTEINS PRODUCED INSIDE LIVING CELLS, WHICH ARE MINI FACTORIES GENERATING THE GENETICALLY-ENGINEERED PROTEIN TREATMENTS. IT'S A DIFFERENT APPROACH FROM TRADITIONAL DRUGS, WHICH ARE MANUFACTURED USING CHEMICAL SYNTHESIS. BIOLOGICS OFFER HOPE WHERE OTHER THERAPIES HAVE FAILED. TO MASS PRODUCE THESE BIOLOGIC MEDICINES, SCIENTISTS USE THE MOLECULAR MACHINERY INSIDE LIVING CELLS. THE PROCESS STARTS WITH THE INSERTION OF GENETIC MATERIAL INTO CHINESE HAMSTER OVARIAN CELLS. THEY'RE KNOWN AS C.H.O. CELLS. THEY KEEP THEM FROZEN IN LIQUID NITROGEN UNTIL THE NEXT STEP. IN THE SEED LAB, A TECHNICIAN THAWS THE CELLS IN WARM WATER. HE TRANSFERS THEM TO A GLASS FLASK THAT CONTAINS GROWTH MEDIA. THE GROWTH MEDIA IS COMPRISED OF HUNDREDS OF NUTRIENTS, INCLUDING VITAMINS AND MINERALS. IT'S A RECIPE TO HELP THE CELLS MULTIPLY. A WORKER TRANSFERS THE FLASK THAT CONTAINS THE CELLS TO THE PRODUCTION SIDE OF THE PLANT. THE TEAM INJECTS THE MIXTURE INTO A FIVE-GALLON CAPACITY BIOREACTOR. INSIDE, A PROPELLER AGITATES THE MIXTURE TO STIMULATE GROWTH. OVER A THREE-WEEK PERIOD, THE NUMBER OF CELLS INCREASES EXPONENTIALLY. EACH NEW CELL IS PROGRAMMED TO PRODUCE THE TARGET BIOLOGIC PROTEIN. NEXT, A TECHNICIAN MEASURES SALTS AND OTHER DRY INGREDIENTS. HE'S PREPARING A RECIPE FOR PURIFYING THE PROTEIN LIQUID ONCE IT'S BEEN SEPARATED FROM THE CELLS. HE LABELS THE BAG AND RECORDS THE INFORMATION SEPARATELY, AS REQUIRED BY GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS. HE ADDS THE INGREDIENTS TO PURIFIED WATER IN A MIXING TANK. AN AUTOMATED SYSTEM KEEPS TABS ON THE CONDITION OF THE PURIFICATION SOLUTION. AFTER SEPARATING CELLULAR MATERIAL FROM THE PROTEIN MIXTURE, THE TEAM PUMPS IT THROUGH STEEL-AND-GLASS COLUMNS. HERE, THE PURIFICATION SOLUTION WORKS WITH RESIN BEADS TO SEPARATE THE PROTEIN FROM THE IMPURITIES. FINALLY, THIS TECHNICIAN TAKES A SAMPLE AND CONDUCTS A TEST TO ENSURE THE MEDICINE IS STERILE. GROWN IN LIVING CELLS, THESE BIOLOGIC MEDICINES ARE NOW ON THEIR WAY TO POTENTIALLY MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN PEOPLE LIVES.