Avid Bioservices Selected By Iovance Biotherapeutics to Lead Process Development Through CGMP Manufacturing of Novel IL-2 Analog, IOV-3001

TUSTIN, Calif., Aug. 06, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Avid Bioservices, Inc. (NASDAQ:CDMO) (NASDAQ:CDMOP), a dedicated biologics contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) working to improve patient lives by providing high quality development and manufacturing services to biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, today announced that Iovance Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ: IOVA) has selected Avid to provide process development, pilot-batch manufacturing and CGMP manufacturing services to support development of IOV-3001, a novel antibody cytokine engrafted protein.

Cell line development activities for IOV-3001 are currently being conducted by Aragen Bioscience under a subcontracting agreement with Avid. In parallel with cell line development, Avid will commence analytical activities, upstream and downstream process development, and pilot-scale non-GMP manufacturing for IOV-3001. Following completion of these activities, Avid will advance to CGMP manufacturing of IOV-3001 within Avid’s state-of-the-art Myford facility in Tustin, CA.

“We are pleased to be selected by Iovance to provide CDMO services to support the company’s continued advancement in developing novel anti-cancer drug candidates. As an Interleukin-2/antibody engrafted protein, IOV-3001 is the type of complex therapeutic candidate for which Avid possesses unique process development and manufacturing expertise, illustrated by our 27 years of producing related compounds,” said Timothy Compton, chief commercial officer of Avid. “This new contract award also illustrates the value of Avid’s efforts to establish alliances with key providers of complementary CDMO services such as Aragen. We are pleased to have them contribute their cell line development expertise to this project.”

About Avid Bioservices, Inc.

Avid Bioservices is a dedicated contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) focused on development and CGMP manufacturing of biopharmaceutical drug substances derived from mammalian cell culture. The company provides a comprehensive range of process development, CGMP clinical and commercial manufacturing services for the biotechnology and biopharmaceutical industries. With 27 years of experience producing monoclonal antibodies and recombinant proteins, Avid's services include CGMP clinical and commercial drug substance manufacturing, bulk packaging, release and stability testing and regulatory submissions support. For early-stage programs the company provides a variety of process development activities, including upstream and downstream development and optimization, analytical methods development, testing and characterization. The scope of our services ranges from standalone process development projects to full development and manufacturing programs through commercialization.