Asahi Kasei Medical concluded an agreement on April 14, 2022 (JST) through a U.S. subsidiary to wholly acquire Bionova Scientific, LLC, a provider of contract process development services and GMP-compliant contract manufacturing services to biopharmaceutical companies, especially those developing next-generation antibody based drugs*.

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Bionova Scientific Main Facility (Photo: Business Wire)

One of the Asahi Kasei Group’s growth engines is the bioprocess business of Asahi Kasei Medical. In addition to the manufacture and sale of Planova™ filters and bioprocess equipment, Asahi Kasei Medical has been proactively expanding this business into the field of biosafety contract testing with the acquisition in 2019 of Austrian viral safety testing services provider Virusure Forschung und Entwicklung GmbH, followed by the 2021 acquisition of U.S.-based mycoplasma testing services provider Bionique Testing Laboratories LLC.

Bionova Scientific’s process development capabilities are particularly highly regarded in the industry, and it has a rich track record regarding complex next-generation antibody drugs, which are typically challenging to manufacture. Its GMP manufacturing facility has state-of-the-art equipment including single-use bioreactors, suited to meet rising demand driven by the expansion of the antibody drug market and a steep increase in the number of biopharmaceuticals entering the clinical pipeline.

Acquiring Bionova Scientific will enable Asahi Kasei Medical to add a biopharmaceutical CDMO (contract development and manufacturing organization) to its bioprocess business. As process development and GMP manufacturing operations are key to the overall success of biopharmaceutical customers’ businesses and the launch of new drugs, being able to offer a broader range of critical know-how driven services to biopharmaceutical customers will allow Asahi Kasei Medical to grow its bioprocess business more rapidly by better serving the industry and by reaching a broader range of customers, including those at the cutting edge of next generation biopharmaceuticals.

Through its provision of innovative and exceptionally reliable products and services, Asahi Kasei Medical aims to contribute to improved safety and efficient manufacture of biotherapeutics, and to further driving the growth of the healthcare sector of the Asahi Kasei Group.

Closing of the acquisition is subject to receipt of necessary regulatory clearances.

* Next generation antibody based drugs differ from conventional antibody based drugs in their degree of complexity and sophistication of mechanism of action, and include examples such as antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) and bispecific antibodies.

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