Fujifilm To Invest $37 Million in New Liposomal Mfg Facility

Fujifilm plans to invest approximately 4 billion yen ($37 million) in a pharmaceutical production site of its group company, Toyama Chemical Co., to build a new manufacturing facility for liposome drugs. Construction of the new facility is expected to begin in September 2018, and the facility is scheduled to begin operations in February 2020.

Liposome drugs contain vesicles made from phospholipids. Fujifilm is using its nano-dispersion technology, analysis technology, and process technology cultivated through its photographic film business to promote the research and development of liposome drugs. In particular, with its anti-cancer agent FF-10832, which encapsulates a marketed drug to permit lower dosing. The company is working toward the start of Phase I clinical trials of the drug in the US in 2018. The company is conducting research and development aiming for the early start of clinical trials on liposome drugs other than FF-10832. The new facility will manufacture liposome drugs such as FF-10832 for use in the clinical studies and commercial marketing.

The new facility will manufacture liposome drugs with manufacturing equipment originally designed and developed using Fujifilm’s production technologies and the installation of high-containment facilities as well as the use of knowledge from Toyama Chemical on the sterile production of injectable formulations. The facility will feature production systems using information and communication technologies to enable the centralized control of the manufacturing process, quality assessment data, and facility operation data as well as the control of use of raw materials and parts through electronic tags, to achieve production operations.

Fujifilm is engaged in the development of new drugs with a therapeutic focus in oncology, central nervous system diseases, and infectious diseases using advanced technologies cultivated in the company’s photographic film business such as the synthesis and design of compounds and nano-dispersion technology. The company is also developing drug-delivery systems.

Source: Fujifilm

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