BioProcess Insider Interview: Claudia Melara, Gamma Biosciences

Claudia Melara, Vice President of Key Accounts, Gamma Biosciences; and Dan Stanton, Co-founder and Editor, BioProcess Insider.

Moderator: Dan Stanton, Co-founder and Editor, BioProcess Insider.

Featuring: Claudia Melara, Vice President of Key Accounts, Gamma Biosciences.

Since its launch in 2020, Gamma Biosciences has acquired or purchased controlling stakes in several solutions providers, the capabilities of which now span the entire biomanufacturing spectrum. Gamma Bio helps drug developers move their products from preclinical research through good manufacturing practice (GMP) production. To spur on commercialization of advanced therapies, Gamma Bio now has established a key accounts program. Drug developers can qualify for the program if they have established global operations for cell and/or gene therapy development. Each account holder is assigned a project manager, who organizes global support services as a product advances through the Gamma Bio workflow.

Melara noted that bioprocess suppliers often provide teams of managers, each of whom represents a specific biomanufacturing group. Designating one point of contact
streamlines communication with customers, subject-matter experts, and application scientists. Having a single manager oversee each program also enables customers to identify efficiencies at different biomanufacturing stages.

Among the industry’s “pain points,” Melara noted that advanced-therapy developers need to improve transfection efficiency. Drug developers also express concerns about supply-chain continuity. But key account holders can work with companies such as Gamma subsidiary Astrea Bioseparations, which manufactures its own affinity ligands for ligand-discovery, adsorbent-development, and column-packing activities. Such capabilities enable account holders to know when materials will be available for their processes.

Melara noted that subsequent acquisitions will support the existing workflow and complement and deepen the downstream capabilities of the Gamma Bio platform.

Fill out the form below to view the full BPI Theater webcast.