Lonza and Vertex Enter Commercial Supply Agreement for CASGEVY, the Sickle Cell Disease Gene-Edited Cell Therapy

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Editor's note: this story was originally published on BioPharmInternational.com.

Lonza announced on Sept. 24, 2024 that it has entered into a long-term commercial supply agreement with Vertex Pharmaceuticals under which it will manufacture Casgevy (exagamglogene autotemcel), the first clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/ CRISPR-associated protein 9 (Cas9)-gene-edited cell therapy for treating sickle cell disease (SCD) and β thalassemia.

Under the agreement, Vertex will have access to Lonza’s scientific, regulatory, and manufacturing expertise as well as its global manufacturing network and its experience in the commercial manufacture of cell therapy products. Lonza plans to manufacture Casgevy at its cell therapy manufacturing facilities in Geleen, the Netherlands, with plans to expand to its Portsmouth, NH manufacturing facility in the United States.

“It is a privilege to work with Vertex on bringing its innovative and cutting-edge medicines to patients suffering from life-threatening diseases. We are also pleased to reach a significant milestone towards supporting the commercial manufacture of Casgevy by receiving the regulatory approval at our state-of-the-art cell therapy manufacturing site in Geleen,” said Daniel Palmacci, president, Cell & Gene, Lonza, in a company press release.

The Geleen facility recently received a good manufacturing practice (GMP) license from FDA, the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Lonza expects the Portsmouth site to begin GMP operations in 2025.

“Manufacturing a first-of-its-kind therapy [such as] Casgevy is complex and requires advanced technology and capabilities. The Lonza team have been excellent partners as we have invested in our global manufacturing network to ensure Casgevy will be available for the patients who need it. We look forward to our continued collaboration,” said Morrey Atkinson, PhD, executive vice-president and chief technical operations officer, head of Biopharmaceutical Sciences and Manufacturing Operations, Vertex, in the press release.

Casgevy was approved by the MHRA in November 2023 (1), by FDA in December 2023 (2), and by EMA in February 2024 (3). Following the MHRA and FDA approvals in late 2023, Vertex entered a deal with RoslinCT, a UK-based cell and gene therapy contract development and manufacturing organization, in December 2023 (4) to manufacture Casgevy. RoslinCT runs manufacturing facilities in Edinburgh, Scotland, and Boston, Mass., which are purpose-built for cell therapy products. The CDMO had been working with Vertex on an adaptive basis while Vertex moved through clinical and regulatory development of Casgevy.

References

1. Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Vertex and CRISPR Therapeutics Announce Authorization of the First CRISPR/Cas9 Gene-Edited Therapy, Casgevy (exagamglogene autotemcel), by the United Kingdom MHRA for the Treatment of Sickle Cell Disease and Transfusion-Dependent Beta Thalassemia. Press Release, Nov. 16, 2023.
2. FDA. FDA Approves First Gene Therapies to Treat Patients with Sickle Cell Disease. Press Release, Dec. 8, 2023.
3. Vertex Pharmaceuticals. European Commission Approves First CRISPR/Cas9 Gene-Edited Therapy, Casgevy (exagamglogene autotemcel), for the Treatment of Sickle Cell Disease and Transfusion-Dependent Beta Thalassemia. Press Release. Feb. 13, 2024.
4. RoslinCT. RoslinCT to Manufacture First-Ever US FDA Approved CRISPR-Based Gene Therapy Casgevy (exagamglogene autotemcel). Press Release. Dec. 11, 2023.

Source: Lonza