US biotechnology company Ginkgo Bioworks will work to develop a live cellular based therapeutic that can produce antibodies to fight human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and/or malaria directly in the body.
Ginkgo Bioworks hopes to create high-throughput, long-lasting cell lines using its expertise in mammalian cellular engineering. This created cell line will be placed in an implantable device for continuous delivery of therapeutic antibodies. The therapy will operate as a ‘cell factory’. For twelve months or longer it will deliver the therapy to the patient.
The authors of the project believe that the new cell technology will be more accessible and particularly useful in low- and middle-income countries where it is difficult to obtain the necessary medicines.
Yahoo!Finance reports that this research has been funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Recall that Radiant Biotherapeutics announced that it has received a $2 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop the next generation of HIV biologics based on Radiant’s Multabody™ platform.