Abzena strengthens R&D capabilities to support rapid antibody discovery

Abzena, a leading CDMO providing integrated discovery, development and manufacturing of biologics and antibody drug conjugates (ADCs), has announced a significant upgrade to its research and development capabilities in Cambridge. This includes an investment in B cell discovery technologies and the appointment of Jamie Campbell as Vice President of Research & Development.

As part of its investment in primary B cell antibody discovery technologies, Abzena has implemented the Berkeley Lights’ Beacon® system, a cutting-edge platform that supports rapid antibody discovery, by isolating single B cells from a target-primed cohort of lymphocytes. This technology further enhances the capabilities of Abzena’s R&D team in antibody discovery, enabling delivery of a diverse, better characterised panel of recombinant antibodies, in a significantly shorter time. This platform strengthens Abzena’s existing capabilities in, developability, bioconjugation, cell line development and manufacture.

Brought in to head up the Cambridge site and R&D team, Jamie Campbell has been appointed as Vice President of Research & Development. Jamie brings 17 years of antibody discovery and development experience to the role and is responsible for building on the reputation of Abzena for meeting and exceeding client expectations. He will oversee the performance of Abzena’s target to lead business covering discovery, design & developability programs ensuring the continued improvement of our services and development of our R&D team.

Campbell Bunce, Chief Scientific Officer at Abzena said: “The introduction of B cell discovery to Abzena’s capabilities is a significant new advancement to our antibody offering and is part of a number of new developments in the pipeline for Abzena. Appointing Jamie to our team has further strengthened our skills and expertise within R&D, as he brings a wealth of experience to augment and build on our capabilities and the service we deliver for clients”.

As part of its new developments, Abzena is also working on its high throughput small scale production capabilities. This will support B cell antibody discovery by facilitating testing for affinity, stability, and mechanism of action early in the assay cascade. Abzena’s clients will then have access to an enhanced dataset across multiple parameters, without compromising on throughput or number of hits tested.