Advancing Immunotherapies with Scalable HSC Expansion

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are pivotal for off-the-shelf allogeneic cell therapies, due to their high potential to treat blood-related disorders and ability to differentiate into immune cells, such as natural killer (NK) cells. While HSC expansion molecules like IBR403 (Immune Bridge proprietary small molecule) enable CD34+ cell growth, conventional 2D cell culture methods are inefficient, costly, labor-intensive, and lack scalability, limiting large-scale clinical and commercial production. To address these challenges, we developed a robust, scalable and high-throughput platform using semi-automated stirred-tank bioreactors to expand cord blood-derived HSCs(CBUs) and differentiate them into NK cells.

Key Takeaways:

• Successfully optimized expansion of CBU-derived HSCs and NK differentiation in Ambr^®15 system with CellGenix^® SCGM, CellGenix^® cytokines (SCF, Flt3-L, TPO, IL-6), and IBR403
• MODDE^®-driven DOE and efficient CD34⁺ expansion with reduced cytokine input
• Established a scalable, donor-independent platform for HSC-derived immune cell therapies targeting oncology and immune disorders