Episode 8: A View On Process Analytical Technologies
Process Analytical Technologies: Real-Time Insight for Smarter Manufacturing
In this episode, we speak with Carrie Mason, Thad Webster, and Ryan McDougall from Lonza’s PAT Center of Excellence about how Process Analytical Technologies are transforming the way biologics are developed and produced.
This episode of A View On takes us inside the manufacturing suite, where data, sensors, and decision-making converge in real time. Our guests explain how process analytical technologies (PAT) bring advanced analytics and spectroscopy directly into bioprocesses, allowing operators and scientists to “see” what’s happening inside a bioreactor without taking samples out.
Traditionally, biomanufacturing has depended on offline sampling, where materials are removed and sent to the lab for quality testing, a process that can take hours or even days. With PAT, those same insights can now be gathered in real time, enabling faster responses, greater reproducibility, and reduced batch variability.
Together, these approaches are changing not just how data are collected, but how manufacturing decisions are made, turning process analytics into a central pillar of modern bioproduction.
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Episode 7: A View On Spray-Drying mRNA-based Therapies
A View On Spray-Drying mRNA-based Products
Delivering mNRA Therapies: A Bullseye for Asthma and Future Pandemics
In this episode, we speak with Carsten Rudolph, CEO and co-founder of Ethris, about a novel spray-dried mRNA therapy designed to restore immune balance in asthma patients and prepare for future pandemics.
This episode of A View On takes us deep into the lungs, where science, engineering, and medicine converge. Our guest, Carsten Rudolph, CEO and co-founder of Ethris, explains how his team is developing inhalable mRNA-based therapies for chronic respiratory conditions like asthma, rare diseases such as primary ciliary dyskinesia, and even protection in the case of future COVID-19-like pandemics.
Unlike vaccines, which target specific viruses, this approach focuses on strengthening the body’s innate immune response. Ethris’ lead candidate delivers instructions to lung cells to produce a protein that helps the respiratory tract fight off infections. In asthma patients, this immune response is often weakened, so restoring it could help prevent attacks. And since the effect is virus-agnostic, the same therapy could also be used preventively in vulnerable groups during pandemic outbreaks, offering protection before a tailored vaccine is available.
It’s a powerful example of how mRNA therapies could move out of the lab and into real-world use, improving chronic care while helping the world prepare for what comes next.
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Episode 6: A View On Improving Microbial Manufacturing
Unlocking Microbial Manufacturing: Innovation Across the Pipeline
For more than 40 years, microbial fermentation has been the workhorse of biologic manufacturing. From the first recombinant insulin to today’s increasingly complex therapeutic formats, the technology has consistently adapted to meet the needs of patients, developers, and regulators.
Karlheinz Flicker, Director of Microbial R&D, offers a strategic perspective on how microbial systems like E. coli and Pichia pastoris support emerging non-Fc biologics such as nanobodies and cytokines. Later, Joan Cortada, Associate Principal Scientist, walks us through a promising innovation in protein refolding that uses high pressure to reduce environmental impact and improve yields.
The episode underscores how upstream and downstream process innovation, from strain engineering to greener purification steps, can help make biologics more scalable, flexible, and sustainable.
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Episode 5: A View On Smart Capsule Technology
A Swallow Instead of a Jab? A Capsule That Delivers Like an Injection
In this episode, we’re joined by Karsten Lindhardt, Founder and CEO of Biograil, to explore how a spring-loaded oral capsule could revolutionize drug delivery—offering patients a needle-free alternative with the same therapeutic impact as subcutaneous injections.
From insulin to monoclonal antibodies, biologic drugs are typically delivered through injections—often multiple times a week. For many patients, this isn’t just painful; it disrupts daily life and can be a major barrier to long-term treatment compliance. Imagine a world where those same treatments could be taken as a pill—no injections, no anxiety, no need for clinical visits.
That’s the vision behind Biograil’s BIONDD™ platform: a capsule that carries a mechanical device inside. Once swallowed, the capsule settles in the stomach, where it activates a spring-loaded insertion element like a bee’s stinger that delivers the active drug directly into the stomach lining. The result? Bioavailability comparable to injections, but with all the ease of an oral dose.
Want to Know More?
Join us in this conversation hosted by Martina Ribar Hestericová to hear how BioGrail is reshaping the future of biologic drug delivery—making it more convenient, less invasive, and better suited to real-life patient needs. We discuss everything from pediatric applications and veterinary uses to sustainability and the engineering behind this remarkable technology.
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Episode 4: A View On Developing Acid Reflux Therapy
Pain in the Gut: Next Generation Therapy for Acid Reflux in the Pipeline
In this episode, we are joined by Kjell Anderson, Chief Scientific Officer at Cinclus Pharma, to discuss a novel treatment for acid reflux.
Millions of people worldwide grapple with acid reflux, which may progress to gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Chronic acid exposure in the esophagus can lead to discomfort, inflammation, and even erosions—tissue damage that can severely affect a patient’s quality of life. While lifestyle modifications and standard proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) offer relief for some, they are not always effective for moderate to severe forms of GERD, largely due to limited coverage over a 24-hour period.
In this episode we discuss a next-generation compound—linaprazan glurate—designed to address these unmet needs. By providing a longer and more controlled suppression of gastric acid than traditional PPIs, this competitive, reversible inhibitor holds promise for patients whose symptoms or erosions persist despite standard therapy. With a Phase 2 study completed and Phase 3 on the horizon, linaprazan glurate could mark a turning point for those in search of more consistent relief.
Want to Know More?
Join us in this conversation hosted by Martina Ribar Hestericová, for the full story about the science behind acid reflux, challenges in clinical development, and how a novel therapy like linaprazan glurate may reshape the future of GERD treatment.
Discoveries in technology, medicine, and nutrition are emerging with accelerating speed and improving our health and quality of life. Brought to you by Lonza, “A View On” podcast is a series of short conversations with industry leaders. Join us to discuss new trends that are impacting scientific research, drug discovery and business.
The series of monthly conversations with pharma, biotech and nutrition leaders from across industry and academia covers a wide range of topics from 3D bioprinting to therapeutic cannabinoids. In under ten minutes, each podcast takes the audience on a rapid but deep dive into an exciting development that promises to profoundly change or even revolutionize healthcare.
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