Specifically, ABL will manufacture KaliVir’s oncolytic viruses for that company’s upcoming clinical trial. The privately held Pennsylvania-based biotech develops and maintains oncolytic viral immunotherapy programs.

ABL said the pact, for which financial terms have not been disclosed, will allow it to strengthen its new fixed-bed bioreactor platform and develop a new generation of oncolytic viruses. The CDMO will provide KaliVir with material to perform its first-in-human clinical study with oncolytic vaccinia virus derived from its proprietary Vaccinia Enhanced Template (VET) platform and make progress toward supplying unmet needs.

At the same time, the partnership is expected to boost the Maryland-based CDMO’s global position in the large-scale manufacturing of oncolytic as well as smallpox viruses.

 ABL credits itself with pioneering the development and manufacturing of viral vectors in the 1990s. The company said its adherent platform enables production of a substantial quantity of its oncolytic viral immunotherapy to cover the market’s requirements.  The collaboration with KaliVir dovetails with its strategy to develop its platform simultaneously on both sides of the Atlantic, it added.

In May this year, KaliVir announced a collaboration with Roche to leverage its VET platform to discover and develop novel oncolytic virus candidates.

The platform is said to be able to enhance the vaccinia viral backbone with a combination of proprietary genetic modifications to maximize tumor killing and systemic delivery and spread. Moreover, it can be readily optimized to combine with a wide variety of therapeutic transgenes.

Author: Dede Williams, Freelance Journalist