Development of an intensified fed-batch production platform with doubled titers using N-1 perfusion seed for cell culture manufacturing

Abstract The goal of cell culture process intensification is to increase volumetric productivity, generally by increasing viable cell density (VCD), cell specific productivity or production bioreactor utilization in manufacturing. In our previous study, process intensification in fed-batch production with higher titer or shorter duration was demonstrated by increasing the inoculation seeding density (SD) from ~ 0.6 (Process A) to 3–6 × 10 6 cells/mL (Process B) in combination with media enrichment. In this study, we further increased SD to 10–20 × 10 6 cells/mL (Process C) using perfusion N-1 seed cultures, which increased titers already at industrially relevant levels by 100% in 10–14 day bioreactor durations for four different mAb-expressing CHO cell lines. Redesigned basal and feed media were critical for maintaining higher VCD and cell specific productivity during the entire production duration, while medium enrichment, feeding strategies and temperature shift optimization to accommodate high VCDs were also important. The intensified Process C was successfully scaled up in 500-L bioreactors for 3 of the 4 mAbs, and quality attributes were similar to the corresponding Process A or Process B at 1000-L scale. The fed-batch process intensification strategies developed in this study could be applied for manufacturing of other mAbs using CHO and other host cells.