In 2018, Synlogic explored options for producing clinical-trial material for its lead programs, including a candidate therapy for the rare metabolic disease phenylketonuria (PKU). Like other emerging drug developers, the company evaluated the merits of outsourcing manufacturing to third parties. However, Synlogic leverages synthetic biology tools to design and develop therapeutics based on genetically engineered microbes. Thus, it also needed to consider requirements specific to live biotherapeutics. Late in 2018, Synlogic announced plans to establish its own current good manufacturing…