ISO/TC 276/WG 4 - Bioprocessing

This document specifies requirements and gives guidance to suppliers and users of ancillary materials (AMs) to improve the consistency and quality of AMs of biological (human and animal) and chemical origin used in the production of cellular therapeutic products and gene therapy products for human use. This document is applicable to materials that are used for cell processing and that come into contact with the active substance and that do not intentionally form part of the final cell and gene therapy product. EXAMPLE 1 Reagents, anticoagulants, cytokines, growth factors, enzymes, antibodies, serum (human or bovine), buffered solutions, culture media, dishes (coated with biological material), beads (coated with biological material), cryoprotectants (agents for cryopreservation), activation agents/reagents, non-mammalian cell (e.g. insect cell, bacterial cell), plasmid, viral vector. This document does not apply to materials that are not used for cell processing, materials that do not come into contact with the active substance, or materials that intentionally form part of the final cell and gene therapy product. EXAMPLE 2 Cells that are either starting materials, intermediates or final form of a cellular therapeutic product, feeder cells, additives used post bioprocessing, scaffolds, non-biological consumables (e.g. beads, dishes, tissue culture flasks, bags, tubing, pipettes, needles), other plasticware that come into contact with the cell or tissue, apparatus, instruments. A decision flowchart is given in Annex A. NOTE International, regional or national regulations or requirements can also apply to specific topics covered in this document.

This document specifies minimum requirements and general considerations for equipment, consisting of hardware, software and consumables, used in the manufacturing of cells for therapeutic use. This includes equipment for processing cells for therapeutic use starting from cell isolation/selection, expansion, washing and volume reduction, from cell finish through to cryopreservation for the storage of cells for therapeutic use. This document gives guidance on the design, use and maintenance of equipment and equipment systems to both suppliers and users from aspects including the target parties, i.e. supplier or user, and phase of involved task, i.e. design, use or maintenance. This document is applicable to any unit operation system that is used, alone or in combination, for the manufacturing of cells for therapeutic use, meeting user requirements. It is applicable to devices used for the purpose of monitoring equipment status. It does not apply to: processing equipment for cells for therapeutic use used at the point of care; devices used for analytical purposes; biosafety cabinets, general cell culture equipment (such as CO2 incubators, etc.), and software to control multiple equipment systems or multiple unit operations.

This document specifies general requirements and reviews the points to consider for the transportation of cells for therapeutic use, including storage during transportation. Transportation starts from the transfer of the packaged cells by the sender to the transportation service provider and ends when the package is delivered to the receiver at its destination. This document does not apply to transportation of cells within one facility. This document includes the development of a transportation plan including verification and validation, communication between the client and the transportation service provider, and associated documentation. This document does not specify particular conditions for transportation such as specification for shipping container, ambient temperature control, etc.

This document specifies definitions and general requirements for ancillary materials (AMs) used in cell processing of cellular therapeutic products. This document is applicable to cellular therapeutic products, including those gene therapy products whereby cells form part of the final product. It does not apply to products without cells. This document does not cover the selection, assessment or control of starting materials and excipients. NOTE International, regional or national regulations or requirements can also apply to specific topics covered in this document.

This document provides guidance for ancillary material (AM) suppliers to maintain a high level of lot-to-lot consistency in the aspects of identity, purity, stability, biosafety, performance, as well as the accompanying documentation. This document is applicable to cellular therapeutic products, including gene therapy products whereby cells form part of the final product. It does not apply to products without cells. The AMs described in this document include those of biological origin [e.g. sera, media (including media additives), growth factors, and monoclonal antibodies] and chemical origin. This document does not address dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) for cryopreservation, beads, scaffolds, feeder cells, apparatus and instruments, or additives used post bioprocessing. This document does not cover the selection, assessment or control of starting materials and excipients. NOTE International, regional or national regulations or requirements can also apply to specific topics covered in this document.

This document provides guidance for ancillary material (AM) users. It is applicable to cellular therapeutic products, including those gene therapy products whereby cells form part of the final product. It does not apply to products without cells. This document focuses primarily on ancillary materials (AMs) of biological (human and animal) origin and their potential impurities and contaminants. NOTE 1 The decision chart in Figure 1 illustrates the rationale underlying the scope of this document. However, diverse biological sources, including plants, insects and marine organisms, can also be used in the development of a cellular therapeutic product. Therefore the fundamental principles of risk management also apply for these sources of AMs. This document does not cover the selection, assessment or control of starting materials and excipients. However, it is anticipated that these are still covered by general risk management procedures. This document is applicable for users at all stages of clinical development and supply; however maximum benefits can be gained by the implementation of the recommendations in the early stages of development. NOTE 2 International, regional or national regulations or requirements can also apply to specific topics covered in this document.