Recognized as a leader in Optics & Fluidics, IDEX Health & Science has leveraged technologies from across its business to bring the Tridex™ Protein Analyzer to the Bioprocessing industry last month. The Tridex Protein Analyzer is a tool for quickly determining the antibody concentration, or “titer” of biologic drugs during production.
Biologics are a new class of drugs used to treat some cancers as well as autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease and psoriasis by stimulating or suppressing the immune system. Biosimilars, sometimes referred to as biogenerics, are highly similar versions of biologics.
The Tridex Analyzer is the first protein analyzer on the market built specifically for bioprocess monitoring and is a complete solution for improving efficiencies in the drug development process for biologics and biosimilars.
Using a space-saving design, Tridex requires only two consumable parts: the reagent pack and the analysis module. Tridex performs a proprietary trap-and-elute technique that quantifies the amount of antibody or immunoglobulin G (IgG) in a cell-free sample. This approach delivers fast and accurate results without the need for method development or specialized training.
Biologics are large complex molecules, and an antibody is a specific type of biologic. Unlike a drug, which is manufactured through chemical synthesis, biologics are manufactured in living systems such as a cells or bacteria. The process to make a biologic is very similar to the process for making beer or wine and takes a few days to weeks to ferment or grow the cells which produce the antibody. The process needs to be monitored constantly to ensure consistent, high quality products.
The biopharmaceutical industry has been seeking alternatives to monitor the process. The current methods can be time-consuming, require highly skilled technicians and are performed in a separate QC lab often far from the production floor. The most common method for measuring antibody concentration is High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). Operating an HPLC requires a high level of training and skill to develop new methods and troubleshoot the system. Even after an HPLC method is developed, expertise is required to run a test and interpret the results.
The Tridex analyzer can be used in the development of drugs such as Humira, Rituxan and Enbrel, which can treat several diseases including:
- Arthritis (Rheumatoid, Psoriatic & Juvenile Idiopathic)
- Plaque Psoriasis
- Crohn’s Disease
- Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
- Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
IDEX Health & Science, LLC is the global leader in life science fluidics, microfluidics, and optics, offering a three-fold advantage to customers by bringing optofluidic paths to life with strategic partnerships, breakthrough solutions, and proven expertise. As one of the few companies in the world with component, sub-system, and application level experts, IDEX Health & Science helps instrument developers solve the most demanding fluidic and optical challenges in a wide array of