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Corbion, the Dutch manufacturer of bio-based materials, has formed a 50:50 joint venture with MedinCell for the supply of PEG (polyethyleneglycol) and PLA (polylactic acid) based co-polymers in the field of controlled release drug delivery.
The joint venture, CM Biomaterials, will sell the PEG & PLA co-polymers to MedinCell partners who license the MedinCell controlled release technology, BEPO. Manufacturing of the polymers will take place in Corbion’s medical biomaterials plants in the US and the Netherlands, while development and licensing of the technology remain the exclusive responsibility of MedinCell. CM Biomaterials will be established in the Netherlands.
Marco Bootz, SVP Biochemicals, Corbion, said, “Corbion and MedinCell have been in a joint development program since 2010, to optimise the manufacturing of PEG/PLA polymers for drug delivery. This cooperation has now successfully developed into a joint venture for the supply of PEG/PLA polymers. In this joint venture, Corbion will be responsible for manufacturing the polymers and with our complementary expertise in the field of polymers we will together develop the optimal polymers for MedinCell’s applications. This new technology will further enhance our position in medical biomaterials.”
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Christophe Douat, CEO of MedinCell, added, “The creation of CM Biomaterials validates our balanced network company model that aims to gather leaders in many fields to create best-in-class medicines for Global Health. Based on a complementary partnership, CM Biomaterials will best serve BEPO partners and secure the quality of the polymers used for all BEPO applications.”
Based on a combination of co-polymers, solvent and active pharmaceutical ingredient (API), the BEPO technology can provide a controlled release of drug for days, weeks or months from a fully biodegradable depot that forms after subcutaneous injection or local delivery of the formulated API. As a game-changing technology, BEPO combines many advantages compared to alternative drug delivery technologies, including improved patient compliance, efficacy and tolerability, as well as, versatility, development speed and lower manufacturing costs.
