Cerionx, Inc. And BioProcessors Corp. Partner To Improve High Throughput Cell Culture Process Development Efficiency For The BioPharma Industry
PENNSAUKEN, N.J. and WOBURN, Mass., Dec. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Cerionx, Inc. and BioProcessors Corporation today announced a partnership that will leverage their technologies, and enable biotech and pharmaceutical companies to more rapidly develop biotech products. The addition of Cerionx's TipCharger System(TM) to BioProcessors' SimCell(TM) High Throughput cell culture automation platform enables BioPharma companies to increase the efficiency and effectiveness with which they develop excellence in their manufacturing processes. Tests prove that the TipCharger System rapidly and effectively sterilizes the microbioreactor inoculation needles from all traces of E. Coli bacteria in seconds.
"We are pleased to partner with BioProcessors and provide their customers with a valuable tool that greatly improves productivity," said Paul Hensley, CEO and President, Cerionx. "When combined with the SimCell technology, the TipCharger System significantly increases throughput and ensures that contaminating substances are not introduced into environments that must be kept sterile."
Traditional methods of sterilizing lab automation and scale-up equipment typically utilize heat and chemicals, and are time-consuming, costly and often unreliable. Cerionx is the first company to develop and commercialize a low temperature "cold" atmospheric-pressure plasma process that cleans and sterilizes pipette devices and pin tools in-line and in-process. The patented TipCharger System sterilizes the inoculation needles used in the SimCell platform, using about the same amount of power as a light bulb.
BioProcessors has integrated the TipCharger System into the SimCell High Throughput cell culture platform to ensure feed and inoculation sterility thus ensuring its pharmaceutical and biotech clients effectively develop and scale- up their production processes more quickly and efficiently. The first delivery of this combination system will be to Novo Nordisk, one of the top 20 biopharmaceutical companies in the world.
"We expect our customers will be delighted with the added value we've provided by incorporating Cerionx's technology with our SimCell solution," said Andrey Zarur, CEO and President, BioProcessors. "The addition of the TipCharger System will not only simplify the sterilization process, but will also improve the productivity the SimCell platform offers the BioPharma industry."
Cerionx's TipCharger System vs. E. Coli
Plasma time and depth experiments were designed to test the effectiveness of the TipCharger System in reducing E. Coli titer. The external surface of the microbioreactor inoculation needle was identified as the site of highest risk of cross-contamination in microfluidic transfer. The experiment was designed with the "worst case" scenario to test the sterilization capabilities of plasma technology. Results indicated that the external surfaces of the needles were sterilized (>6 log reduction) after only 10 seconds exposure to the plasma field, without any residue remaining on the surface. Prior to the use of plasma, this process was done with heating coils and chemicals.
About Cerionx
Cerionx, Inc. is a technology company dedicated to the development of state-of-the-art products for laboratory research applications. The TipCharger System(TM), protected by multiple patents and patents pending, can be incorporated on existing as well as new automated liquid handling platforms. In addition to the data cited above, data on cleaning DNA and other substances proves that the TipCharger System is a revolutionary approach to cleaning tips used in liquid handling. More information about Cerionx and the TipCharger System can be found on the company's Web site at: http://www.cerionx.com.
About BioProcessors
BioProcessors Corp. is the leader in delivering micro-engineered solutions for biopharmaceutical process development applications for the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry. BioProcessors' SimCell(TM) is the first fully automated, High Throughput system for bioprocess cell culture development capable of generating data scalable to large-scale bioreactors. Achieved primarily through advances in microbioreactor reactor design and the integration of microfluidics, optical measurement and computer-managed robotic automation, the SimCell innovation changes the biopharmaceutical process development to make it faster, scalable, more accurate and more cost effective. More information about BioProcessors SimCell technology can be found at http://www.bioprocessors.com.
Cerionx, Inc.CONTACT: Brian Gawron, +1-908-276-4344, or brian@sternassociates.com, forCerionx, Inc.; or Stephen K. Tingley of BioProcessors Corp.,+1-781-305-8867, or s.tingley@bioprocessors.com