Cell therapies platform fully open for business in the MHTP Translational Research Facility

Dr Gordon McPhee, Cell Therapies Platform Manager

The Monash Health Translation Precinct’s Cell Therapies Platform is fully open for business, with the addition of a new 3D Bioprinter complementing the suite of facilities available to our scientists, clinicians and external users in the Translational Research Facility.

The GeSim Bioprinter enables scientists to generate fine biocompatible scaffolds to support 3D cell and tissue cultures, potentially replacing cartilage and bone in the human body.

Alternatively, a nano printer is well suited to localising matrix proteins within advanced materials for medical device or biosensor applications. As with all Cell Therapies Platform equipment, the setup is fully GMP compliant, enabling researchers to develop their programs towards clinical trials with confidence.

MHTP Platform Strategic Initiatives Manager, Mrs Vivien Vasic, says the Cell Therapies Platform represents an end-to-end story for regenerative medicine.

‘One stop shop’ for cell therapy manufacture and regenerative medicine

“This truly is a ‘one-stop shop’ facility for regenerative medicine, and one of the few Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) compliant cell therapies environments in Australia,” Mrs Vasic said.

“The Cell Therapies Platform is a major new initiative within the MHTP and has been purposefully designed to underpin clinical translation of cell therapies and regenerative medicine.”

The facilities available to scientists and commercial users at the MHTP Cell Therapies Platform are:

•        Biospherix Xvivo GMP Isolator, a modular cleanroom environment for human cell and tissue  manipulation, expansion and growth, as well as GMP compliant manufacture of medical devices.
•        MACSQuant Tyto providing microfluidic chip-based human cell sorting for cell isolation for research and clinical trials 
•    GeSim Bioprinter for generation of 3D cell and tissue constructs

Strategic location for cell therapies platform

“Our strategic location in the Monash Health Translation Precinct, within the Translational Research Facility, places us in close proximity to scientists and clinicians, which creates a collaborative environment that ensures cutting edge cell therapies reach patients,” she said.

“Our scientists can isolate cell populations of interest from a blood or tissue sample using the Tyto cell sorter and subsequently expand them within the Xvivo Isolator for preclinical and clinical trials; all as part of a fully GMP compliant production line,” Mrs Vasic said.

“The Bioprinter then enables us to produce cell infused 3D constructs for further study of cells in specific biomatrix niches or implantation as part of early stage clinical trials. It’s a pipeline of cell therapy manufacturing, from sample to trial.

Miltenyi Biotec Cell Therapy Centre of Excellence

Miltenyi Biotec, manufacturer of the MACSQuant Tyto GMP cell sorter, has granted prestigious Early Adopter status to the Cell Therapies Platform providing additional technical support and protocol optimisation to users of the machine. The company has also established the Miltenyi Biotec Cell Therapy Centre of Excellence within the MHTP to assist and support translation of potential cell therapies to clinical trials. 

Cell Therapies Platform Manager, Dr Gordon McPhee, says regenerative medicine has been identified by the National Institutes of Health as being the next pillar in modern medicine.

“Our capabilities place us at the forefront of what cell therapies and regenerative medicine represent in 2017, from stem cells to exosomes, combining cell-based therapies with advanced materials to create cutting edge medical devices,” Dr McPhee said.

The Cell Therapies Platform has been made possible by the generous support of Therapeutic Innovations Australia, through the Translating Health Discovery Program of the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy Program (Biospherix Xvivo), The Ian Potter Foundation and Miltenyi Biotec (MACSQuant Tyto) and SIEF funded Biomedical Materials Translational Facility (GeSim Bioprinter).

Please contact gordon.mcphee@hudson.org.au directly if you have any questions.