Novozymes Biopharma Joins with GE Healthcare to Produce and Sell Protein A

Novozymes Biopharma UK Ltd. (Nottingham, UK) has signed a license agreement with GE Healthcare Life Sciences (Chalfont St. Giles, UK), which enables Novozymes Biopharma to produce and deliver native, animal-free Protein A using GE Healthcare technology. Novozymes Biopharma’s Protein A, which is now commercially available, is targeted to customers involved in the production of chromatography media.

Protein A is produced by Novozymes Biopharma AB in Sweden using GE Healthcare’s proprietary technology and production strain. The protein is the active component in chromatography media used in the production of antibodies. Novozymes’ Protein A can then be used to purify antibodies in drug production and biochemical analysis applications.

In nature, the microorganism Staphylococcus aureus uses Protein A to bind antibodies to hide itself from the immune system when invading the body. The ability of Protein A to bind to antibodies has been used successfully at the industrial scale for several years to produce monoclonal antibodies that are used as drugs in the treatment of illnesses such as arthritis and cancer.