NEWS RELEASE: Pitt BioForge Announces Successful Completion of Advanced Manufacturing of Microarray Patches with Panther Life Sciences
Pittsburgh, PA — Pitt BioForge and Panther Life Sciences announced the successful completion of BioForge’s first manufacturing project, achieving what had long been considered one of the most difficult problems in microarray patch (MAP) manufacturing: establishing at-scale, low cost MAPs.
BioForge brings together external collaborators to pursue shared, measurable goals within a fixed budget and timeline. Each project leverages resources and personnel from both BioForge and its partners, with work conducted at BioForge’s facilities.
After a rigorous selection process, Panther Life Sciences was accepted as a BioForge project. Over the course of a year of close collaboration, the two organizations tackled fundamental manufacturing challenges that have historically limited the commercial viability of MAP technologies.
“Our partnership with BioForge demonstrated that large-volume MAP manufacturing is now achievable and economically feasible,” said Carlos Bhola, CEO of Panther Life Sciences. “Through our collaboration, we solved critical process challenges that significantly reduced production costs, demonstrated high volume manufacturing, and established the foundation for scaling the next-generation of treatments. As a result of our successful partnership with BioForge, Panther is establishing a manufacturing competency center in Pittsburgh for a wide range of treatments, where we will continue to advance our core manufacturing processes and discrete manufacturing capabilities.”
With this success, Panther now has the ability to manufacture MAPs at scale, enabling deployment across a comprehensive pipeline of treatments, from skin health to systemic treatments. Panther’s platform produces direct-to-consumer, self-applied treatments that are shelf-stable, minimally invasive, and patient-centric, making them especially suited to address untreated and undertreated people globally.
“We count this as a hybrid success: it’s both a startup and a licensing opportunity,” said Kaigham Gabriel, CEO of BioForge Panther is an innovative healthcare company that is hiring high caliber talent and expanding its presence in Pittsburgh.”
Following the Bioforge project, Panther is expanding its Pittsburgh operations, adding discrete manufacturing capabilities and establishing a competency center to further extend its process innovation capabilities. This expansion solidifies Panther’s Pittsburgh base as a hub for next-generation process and discrete manufacturing, anchored by the discoveries and discipline developed through its BioForge collaboration.
About Panther Life Sciences
Founded in 2023, Panther is unlocking the tremendous biological powers of our skin and Panther is unlocking the tremendous biological powers of our skin, delivering highly efficacious shelf-stable treatments by mail that previously would have required refrigeration and trained healthcare providers. Panther’s precisely-engineered microarray patches (MAPs) address skin health (skincare, medical aesthetics) and treat systemic ailments along the immunological spectrum (infectious diseases, cancer, allergies, autoimmune diseases, etc.).
Panther’s MAPs enable automated data integration with provider and public health systems, and its AI-based predictive analytics enable rapid treatment development, improved patient care and enhanced disease management. Via advanced GMP manufacturing, direct-to-consumer distribution and self-application, Panther’s MAPs are affordable, simultaneously enabling commercial success and universal access.
About BioForge
BioForge’s mission is to accelerate innovations and breakthroughs in the manufacturing of precision medicines to speed their delivery, use, and impact. Based in Pittsburgh, PA, the BioForge project teams work to demonstrate scaling and delivery of precision medicines in less time, more efficiently and cost-effectively enabling equitable access to these life-changing medicines for all.
The opinions expressed in this news release are the author’s only and do not necessarily reflect those of Medical Design & Outsourcing or its employees.
