Scientists hope to link lab bench with pharmacy shelves through Edmonton drug plant
University researchers and drug developers in Edmonton are joining forces to create what they say will be Canada's first facility that can take the latest scientific pharmaceutical insights from the lab through clinical trials to the marketplace.
The partnership, announced Monday, brings together a world-leading laboratory and an existing drug manufacturer to plug a hole in Canada's drug supply system, said Andrew MacIsaac of Applied Pharmaceutical Innovation, the not-for-profit corporation involved in the effort.
“It's the first large-scale marrying of what API is doing and what researchers at a post-secondary institution are undertaking,” he said.
MacIsaac's firm, which currently employs about 40 scientists at its Edmonton facility, is teaming up with the University of Alberta's renowned Li Ka Shing Institute of Virology to form the Canadian Critical Drug Initiative.
“This was a good marriage for both,” said Lorne Tyrrell, institute co-director and the discoverer of the first oral treatment for hepatitis B.
Canada currently lacks the capacity to manufacture its own drug supply, a gap that became obvious when the federal government was trying to lock up supplies of COVID-19 vaccine. The federal government has since funded specific research and manufacturing facilities in Montreal, Winnipeg and Saskatoon.
But the Alberta effort would be unique in linking the lab bench and the drugstore shelf, as well as in the type and breadth of drugs it would help develop.
Michael Houghton, the institute's other director and a Nobel laureate, said the initiative would focus on so-called “small-molecule” drugs - chemically synthesized drugs that make up the great majority of what's in people's medicine cabinets. Ibuprofen, for example, is a small-molecule drug.
“What we're trying to do at the institute is develop novel vaccines, novel therapeutics and novel drug screening tools,” he said. “We have a pipeline which will fit very nicely with the API infrastructure.”
Academic labs do the early research, bringing a novel drug to a proof-of-concept stage in a lab, MacIsaac said.
The institute can recreate that work under conditions that meet regulatory standards, conduct further study on how the drug will behave in the body and how it should be formulated. It can then manufacture it for clinical trials.
The Canadian Critical Drug Initiative will bring both sides together, said MacIsaac. It will also improve the supply chain for already existing drugs such as propofol, which is commonly used to induce unconsciousness for procedures from surgeries to being put on a ventilator.
“It was quite often in short supply before COVID-19, then COVID-19 exacerbated that. Having a resilient supply chain for that drug is critical.”
MacIsaac's company now manufactures drugs in quantities appropriate for clinical trials - a few thousand doses a month. Part of the aim of the new partnership is to ramp that up.
“We'll be able to produce about 70 million doses of drugs a year, a wide variety from the security of supply basic medicines that are needed with the hospital setting to novel drugs that are coming out of institutes like Li Ka Shing,” he said.
That will take some expansion.
The initiative is looking to expand its facilities at the University of Alberta and the Alberta Research Park in Edmonton. A 40,000-square-foot manufacturing facility is also planned.
The whole project will cost about $169 million. Private investors, as well as the municipal and provincial governments, are on board and about half the money has been raised. A funding request has been sent to Ottawa.
MacIsaac said the initiative could be producing drugs within two years.
It's an economic opportunity for a province looking to diversify, he said.
“It'll generate hundreds of jobs in the short term and many, many more in the long term. We'll be able to find a home for a lot of the talent we've grown in the oil and gas sector.”
The initiative could help create a cluster of firms to add to the hundreds of drug manufacturing jobs already in Edmonton, he said.
Edmonton scientists are already waiting to go ahead with clinical trials for vaccines against scourges, such as hepatitis C, or viruses that threaten transplant patients, said Houghton. A way to bring those breakthroughs to market is the missing piece of the puzzle.
“We have a future pipeline,” he said. “We're going to need the Canadian Critical Drug Initiative infrastructure to finish and help us to manufacture these vaccines for clinical trials and to deliver these vaccines.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 1, 2021.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Ho! Ho! HOLY that's cold! Montreal boogie boarder in Santa suit hits St. Lawrence waters
Montreal body surfer Carlos Hebert-Plante boogie boards all year round, and donned a Santa Claus suit to hit the water on Christmas Day in -14 degree Celsius weather.
Historical mysteries solved by science in 2024
This year, scientists were able to pull back the curtain on mysteries surrounding figures across history, both known and unknown, to reveal more about their unique stories.
Mother-daughter duo pursuing university dreams at the same time
For one University of Windsor student, what is typically a chance to gain independence from her parents has become a chance to spend more time with her biggest cheerleader — her mom.
Azerbaijani airliner crashes in Kazakhstan, killing 38 with 29 survivors, officials say
An Azerbaijani airliner with 67 people onboard crashed Wednesday near the Kazakhstani city of Aktau, killing 38 people and leaving 29 survivors, a Kazakh official said.
Montreal man dead after boat explodes in Fort Lauderdale
A Montreal man is dead and several others are injured after a boat exploded in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
King Charles III focuses Christmas message on healthcare workers in year marked by royal illnesses
King Charles III used his annual Christmas message Wednesday to hail the selflessness of those who have cared for him and the Princess of Wales this year, after both were diagnosed with cancer.
Alberta premier hopes for health reform payoff in 2025, regrets deferring tax cut
"It may have been better for Albertans if we'd implemented and then found a way to be able to pay for it."
NFL's Netflix debut on Christmas Day kicked off without a glitch
Mariah Carey opened Wednesday’s doubleheader with a taped performance of “All I Want for Christmas is You” before Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs faced off against Russell Wilson, T.J. Watt and the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Second storm incoming for Christmas Day in southern B.C.
Environment Canada has issued a new series of weather warnings for British Columbia’s south coast Christmas morning.