Digitalisation of Biomanufacturing of Plasmids for the Development of Advanced Therapy Modalities

Digitalization of biDigitalisation of biomanufacturing is key to increasing efficiency, reducing costs, and ensuring quality control in the production of biopharmaceuticals and advanced therapies. Dig4Bio aims to: i) advance the research capacity and profile of the coordinator IST (PT) in the field of digitalisation of biomanufacturing, and ii) strengthen the research management and administrative skills of IST. This will be achieved through a strategic alliance with experts in digital biotechnology from PROSYS, DTU (Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, DK) and lab automation TU Berlin (Chair of Bioprocess Engineering DE). Dig4Bio includes 6 Work Packages (WPs). WP1 (Advancing scientific capacity) and WP2 (Enhancing research management capacity) focus on stepping up the scientific and research management skills of IST through tailored training (workshops, training schools, digital tools, short term visits). In WP3 (Joint research activities), Dig4Bio partners will collaborate on a pioneering R&I initiative that addresses the question: How to develop and incorporate a digitalisation framework in the conceptual design, research and development of biomanufacturing processes. Attention is focused on Escherichia coli-based manufacturing of plasmid DNA, a biomolecule that is gaining increased relevance as a biological (e.g. DNA vaccination, in vivo gene therapy), and as a raw material in the manufacturing of gene/cell therapies (e.g. mRNA vaccines). WP4 (Clustering Activities) aims to foster close ties, synergies and knowledge exchange between the consortium and stakeholders, whereas WP5 (Communication and Dissemination) aims to disseminate findings and promote awareness of the field. WP6 (Coordination and Management) provides the necessary administrative support to ensure the successful and timely execution of all project components. The expected outcomes for Dig4Bio include the elevation of IST profile in digitalisation of biomanufacturing and in research management.