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In the lychee forests of Lingnan, well‑known varieties such as Gua Lü, Nuomici, Feizixiao, and Xianjinfeng captivate countless palates with their unique flavors. Meanwhile, in the cell culture dishes and shake flasks of Canton Biologics' laboratories, star cell lines such as CHOZen® (CHO‑K1), CHOFlow®, and GEX® serve as “trusted assistants” in large‑molecule biologic drug development, thanks to their outstanding expression performance. Though seemingly unrelated, these two worlds actually share fascinating parallels in characteristics, advantages, and applications. Today, let us embark on this delightful journey that bridges the tip of the tongue and the microscopic realm!

Monoclonal antibody (mAb) drugs have developed rapidly in recent years, but their long R&D cycles and high costs limit patient access. mAb biosimilars have similar safety and efficacy profiles to the reference product. The development of a biosimilar follows a stepwise approach, including quality similarity, non‑clinical similarity, and clinical similarity studies. This stepwise process reduces uncertainty in clinical studies, increases the success rate of drug development, and improves patient access. Therefore, many biotech companies consider mAb biosimilars a key R&D focus. Quality attribute analysis of the reference product and similarity studies of the candidate drug are the foundation of biosimilar development and provide an important basis for clinical study design.

In the biopharmaceutical field, protein expression and yield directly impact drug development and industrialization. However, some proteins are classified as "difficult‑to‑express proteins" due to their unique structures and properties, making it difficult to achieve high expression in conventional systems. The reasons for poor expression are varied, involving factors such as molecular structure, stability, and cellular environment.

Difficult‑to‑express proteins (DEPs) include toxoids, enzymes, membrane proteins (MPs), antibodies, and some proteins with poor solubility in prokaryotic expression systems. DEPs are currently being developed as therapeutic proteins, such as drug carriers, antibodies, antimicrobial agents, and vaccines.

Recombinant protein vaccines, also known as genetically engineered recombinant subunit vaccines, essentially express large quantities of pathogen antigenic proteins in engineered cells (e.g., CHO cells) using genetic engineering methods, followed by purification of the protein for vaccine construction. This type of vaccine offers advantages such as high safety, relatively mature technology, and low production cost.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a highly prevalent and contagious respiratory infection that can cause bronchiolitis and pneumonia, affecting more than 64 million people worldwide each year. Because the symptoms of RSV infection closely resemble those of influenza or other respiratory diseases, many infected individuals may not be correctly diagnosed. Young children, the elderly, and people with underlying health conditions are at high risk for severe RSV infection. Each year, RSV leads to more than 3 million hospitalizations of children under 5 years old globally, and nearly 60,000 children die from RSV infection. Based on current case data from Europe and the United States, the harm caused by RSV to young children even exceeds that of COVID‑19.

The global incidence of cancer continues to rise, with an estimated 19.2 million new cancer cases and approximately 10 million deaths in 2020 [1]. Although existing treatments such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and targeted therapy have achieved some progress, drug resistance and low survival rates in advanced cancer remain major challenges. In recent years, immunotherapy, particularly bispecific antibodies (bsAbs), has attracted considerable attention as an emerging cancer treatment strategy. Bispecific antibodies can simultaneously target two different antigens or epitopes, enhancing the immune system’s recognition and killing of tumor cells. They demonstrate stronger targeting capabilities and greater clinical benefits than monoclonal antibodies, especially in patients with relapsed or refractory cancer.

The process of converting a DNA sequence into a correctly folded protein product is extremely complex, involving transcription, translation, post‑translational modifications, protein folding, and finally secretion. Problems at any of these steps can affect protein expression, leading to protein degradation, aggregation, and cytotoxicity.

Drastic environmental changes, layoffs and restructuring, the rise of AI technology… 2023 was a year when HR professionals experienced pain but also hope. What new trends will HR face in 2024?