The role of fermentation technology in biopharmaceuticals
1. Production of active ingredients
The active ingredients of biopharmaceutical drugs are highly specific proteins, and the preparation of such drugs must ensure batch consistency and purity of the product. Fermentation technology can control the conditions of bacteria production and ensure the consistency and quality of products. At the same time, the fermentation conditions can be optimized to increase the yield and improve the culture efficiency, thus reducing the production cost.
2. Metabolic engineering
Metabolic engineering involved in fermentation technology is the metabolic pathway of microorganisms, and this part mainly refers to the metabolic process of microorganisms during the production process. Through the optimization of metabolic engineering, the production of metabolites can be regulated, the synthesis of by-products can be reduced, the yield of target products can be increased and the production cost can be reduced.
3. Protein expression
Microbial expression of secreted exogenous proteins is a core technology and the most challenging part of the biopharmaceutical manufacturing process. In the process of protein expression, it is necessary to consider microbial strain selection, expression vector selection, induction conditions control and so on. Fermentation technology can optimize these conditions.
4. Virus culture
Many biopharmaceuticals for the treatment of diseases require the production of viruses by means of cell culture. Fermentation technology allows better control of the conditions of cell culture and virus culture, improving virus yield and purity.
Trends in fermentation technology in biopharmaceuticals
The application of fermentation technology in biopharmaceutical has been very mature, but with the development of technology, the future development still faces many challenges.
1. Low-cost production
Currently, the production cost of biopharmaceuticals is high due to factors such as equipment costs and process control costs, which tend to make biopharmaceuticals more expensive than traditional drugs. Therefore, the question of how to minimize manufacturing costs so that biopharmaceuticals with better efficacy can reach more patients is an important one. Fermentation technology requires better manufacturing processes and a full suite of economic and environmental control programs.
2. Mass production
Currently, the production cost of biopharmaceuticals is high due to factors such as equipment costs and process control costs, which tend to make biopharmaceuticals more expensive than traditional drugs. Therefore, the question of how to minimize manufacturing costs so that biopharmaceuticals with better efficacy can reach more patients is an important one. Fermentation technology requires better manufacturing processes and a full suite of economic and environmental control programs. Despite the success of biopharmaceuticals in the marketplace, the growth and metabolic processes of microorganisms are affected by factors such as environmental conditions and feeding, leading to challenges in mass production, homogenization and consistency. How to maintain economies of scale while producing large quantities is a topic worth exploring.
3. Application of new technologies
In the future development of biopharmaceuticals, fermentation technology also needs to be integrated with virtual technology, three-dimensional manufacturing and other cutting-edge technologies to further optimize the production process so as to meet the needs of clinical treatment.
