Cell & Gene Therapy companies based at SBC - January 2020
the production challenges faced by advanced therapy companies.
STRENGTH IN CELL AND G E N E T H E R A P Y L E D BY C G T C ATA P U LT
The global investment in 2018 in cell and gene therapies is estimated at $9.7bn (up 64% since 2017) with $1bn of that invested in the UK.1 Backed by over £75m* of funding, the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult’s largescale GMP manufacturing centre enables companies to develop their commercial scale manufacturing processes through a unique collaborative operating model, underpinned by endto-end expertise and practical support from CGT Catapult experts. This accelerates the delivery of cell and gene therapies to market in the UK and internationally. This has attracted to the campus a wide range of companies, including from the US, putting the SBC campus firmly at the centre of cell and gene therapy in Europe. The centre has so far seen five companies benefitting from this model, and it has recently completed the construction of an additional six GMP cleanroom modules, doubling its capacity. Therapies are currently being manufactured and reaching patients nationally and internationally from the centre.
LEADING CAMPUS FOR INVESTMENT
The combination of the strength in cell and gene therapy, access to a supportive environment and focus on commercialisation has reduced the risk of failure and time to market for companies and proved highly attractive to investors. Companies have access to a wide range of investors on the campus, within the UK and internationally. Investors directly associated with the campus are S.R. One (GSK), the LifeArc Seed Fund and the Apollo Therapeutics Fund, which is a collaborative venture
between Imperial, UCL, Cambridge University, AstraZeneca, GSK and Johnson & Johnson and is based at SBC. Since it opened in 2012, companies at SBC at have raised over £1bn equity investment of which over 85% has been for those with a cell and gene therapy focus.
SBC is now one of the largest attractors for equity investment in biotechnology and continues to deliver sustainable commercial success for the UK.
F U T U R E D E V E LO P M E N T AND GROWTH
Situated at the centre of the Golden Triangle of Cambridge, Oxford and London, Stevenage Bioscience Catalyst has outstanding connectivity with key centres of research excellence. Keith Thompson CEO, CELL AND GENE THERAPY CATAPULT
“Our original attraction to the SBC campus was the opportunity to engage with GlaxoSmithKline’s cell and gene therapy group as well as the SMEs on site. The campus now attracts spin-outs to multinationals from around the globe to develop their products here – the centre of the biggest cell and gene therapy cluster in Europe.”
R E A D O N L I N E AT: U K S PA . O R G . U K / B R E A K T H R O U G H
It is therefore ideally positioned to translate leading research innovations into cutting edge therapeutics. SBC continues to build on its success and is entering the next phase of development with plans to double the capacity at the campus within the next two years. Currently, SBC provides of state-ofthe-art laboratory, office and shared space within its Incubator and Accelerator buildings. The new Spark building, which was supported by Hertfordshire LEP, will be officially opened in spring 2020. A further new facility, Sycamore House, is under development in collaboration with Kadans Science Partner and will be opened in 2021 with further growth planned in the future. In October 2019, Nadhim Zahawi MP announced that SBC was designated as the first of six new Life Sciences Opportunity Zones (LSOZ) in the UK, a key part of the government’s commitment to support the growth of life science clusters2. ■
For further information, please visit: www.stevenagecatalyst.com *Funding includes investment from the UK Government’s Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, the Department of Business Energy and Industrial Strategy, Innovate UK and the European Regional Development Fund 2018 Annual Report, Alliance for Regenerative Medicine, https://alliancerm. org/publication/2018-annual-report/ (2018) 1
Business and Industry Minister announces Stevenage Bioscience Catalyst as one of six new Life Science Opportunity Zones in UK, https://www.stevenagecatalyst. com/news/business-and-industry-ministerannounces-stevenage/ (7th October 2019) 2
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