Scalable Innovations in Biomanufacturing: Drugs
Fermenting ultra low-cost drugs at scale
Goals
To use emerging biotechnology platforms to produce ultra low-cost oral biologics and new therapeutic foods at scale.
Background and Current Landscape
Antibodies and other bioactive compounds are generally expensive to manufacture and process for human therapeutic use. Synthetic, edible bioactives and antibodies that are biomanufactured through fermentation processes could offer transformative, ultra low-cost health benefits in low-and-middle income countries (LMICs). Examples of current investment areas include food-based production of biologics in algae, fungi, and plants, including complex antibodies, nanobodies, lysins, and peptides that are low-cost, stable in the gastrointestinal tract, and effective against diverse pathogen targets or bind host receptors. These platforms can be applied towards human health in newborns, adults, and also animals.
Investments in this subdomain support the discovery, scalability, and local manufacturing capacity of fermented bioactive compounds towards the potential development of drug candidates for global benefit.
Potential Applications
Gut-targeted Proteins and Peptides
Accelerator’s Applications of Interest:
- Gastrointestinal-stable antibodies, lysins, and peptides to target enteric pathogens in LMICs and improve gut health
Potential Broader Impacts:
- Gut-active, health-promoting peptides
- Colostrum difficile
- Norovirus
Announcements
Selected Partners
Further Context
Transformation and engineering of edible algae
February 2023