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Ionimed in the Biotech Industry
Monitoring of production processes in the biotech industry at present relies predominantly on off-line sampling and direct analysis techniques. Our goal is to provide a tool to improve this procedure by enabling online production monitoring. This type of direct monitoring technique is the part of process analytical technology (PAT) initiative currently being recommended by the US Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) to improve quality, safety and efficiency in druf manufacturing processes. Using PTR-MS we can measure volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the headspace air of a fermentor. These VOCs are products of microbiological activity during a fermentation process and provide an indication of the current status and development of a production batch.
Our expertise in the field of biotech research has been furthered by our inclusion in the Austrian Centre of Industrial Biotechnology (ACIB) in area 5 - bioprocess-monitoring, which we joined in autumn 2010. The ACIB is a non profit research company and conducts top level research in Graz, Vienna and Tyrol making use of the tools and concepts of nature for industrial production.
Our
work in ACIB includes collaborations with
academic as well as industry partners.
Within the framework of this competence centre we are using PTR-MS to monitor volatile compounds produced during fermentations, with the ultimate aim to enable online process monitoring, control and optimization.
Below
are two examples of fermentation processes that have been monitored with PTR-MS.
The different compounds show varying time evolutions throughout the processes,
which can be used to monitor the status of the fermentation.
It is envisioned that online monitoring with PTR-MS in
future will be an essential tool for optimisation of pharmaceuticals
production, helping to provide cost-effective development and manufacture of
new and already established medications and other pharmaceutical products.
Publications
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