A bioreactor system for the manufacture of a genetically modified Plasmodium falciparum blood stage malaria cell bank for use in a clinical trial

Pawliw, Rebecca, Farrow, Rebecca, Sekuloski, Silvana, Jennings, Helen, Healer, Julie, Phuong, Thuan, Sathe, Pri, Pasay, Cielo, Evans, Krystal, Cowman, Alan F., Schofield, Louis, Chen, Nanhua, McCarthy, James, and Trenholme, Katharine (2018) A bioreactor system for the manufacture of a genetically modified Plasmodium falciparum blood stage malaria cell bank for use in a clinical trial. Malaria Journal, 17. 283.

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Abstract

Background: Although the use of induced blood stage malaria infection has proven to be a valuable tool for testing the efficacy of vaccines and drugs against Plasmodium falciparum, a limiting factor has been the availability of Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)-compliant defined P. falciparum strains for in vivo use. The aim of this study was to develop a cost-effective method for the large-scale production of P. falciparum cell banks suitable for use in clinical trials.

Methods: Genetically-attenuated parasites (GAP) were produced by targeted deletion of the gene encoding the knob associated histidine rich protein (kahrp) from P. falciparum strain 3D7. A GAP master cell bank (MCB) was manufactured by culturing parasites in an FDA approved single use, closed system sterile plastic bioreactor. All components used to manufacture the MCB were screened to comply with standards appropriate for in vivo use. The cryopreserved MCB was subjected to extensive testing to ensure GMP compliance for a phase 1 investigational product.

Results: Two hundred vials of the GAP MCB were successfully manufactured. At harvest, the GAP MCB had a parasitaemia of 6.3%, with 96% of parasites at ring stage. Testing confirmed that all release criteria were met (sterility, absence of viral contaminants and endotoxins, parasite viability following cryopreservation, identity and anti-malarial drug sensitivity of parasites).

Conclusion: Large-scale in vitro culture of P. falciparum parasites using a wave bioreactor can be achieved under GMP-compliant conditions. This provides a cost-effective methodology for the production of malaria parasites suitable for administration in clinical trials.

Item ID: 55180
Item Type: Article (Research - C1)
ISSN: 1475-2875
Keywords: malaria, Plasmodium falciparum, bioreactor, in vitro cultivation, good manufacturing practice
Copyright Information: © The Author(s) 2018. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.
Funders: National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)
Projects and Grants: NHMRC Development Grant APP105999, NHMRC Fellowship Support APP1002835, NHMRC Fellowship Support APP1041802
Date Deposited: 22 Aug 2018 09:38
FoR Codes: 32 BIOMEDICAL AND CLINICAL SCIENCES > 3207 Medical microbiology > 320704 Medical parasitology @ 100%
SEO Codes: 92 HEALTH > 9201 Clinical Health (Organs, Diseases and Abnormal Conditions) > 920109 Infectious Diseases @ 100%
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