Battelle, AmplifyBio, Andelyn Biosciences win seat on 8-year, $149M NIH research contract

A team of three Ohio research companies has won a seat on an 8-year, $149 million indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract vehicle for the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

According to a release from Battelle, the team — also comprised of AmplifyBio and Andelyn Biosciences — will provide manufacturing and nonclinical support for translational development of therapeutic biotechnology products in the NIH drug discovery and development program that addresses neurological conditions.

“The contract will be used to advance innovative therapies, including cell and gene therapy, for a broad variety of neurological diseases,” Drew Cawthon, business line director of life science research at Battelle, stated in the release. “We’ll be researching new and novel ways to treat rare diseases, ones that don’t yet have effective treatments.”

Battelle will offer assay support and integration services to support regulatory approval, as well as a history of federal government contracting experience to supports its position as the prime contractor, the company said in the release.

“The success of this proposal bid allows AmplifyBio to demonstrate our continued partnership with Battelle and formalizes a new partnership with Andelyn Biosciences,” Jerry Hacker, executive vice president and chief commercial officer at AmplifyBio, said in the release. “We look forward to bringing our expertise in advanced therapy analytics and preclinical study capabilities to accelerate groundbreaking therapies for neurological conditions.”

The companies collaborated on the winning proposal, and per the release, each partner expects to receive an equal share of the work stipulated in the contract, relying on the differentiated strengths of each organization to meet client needs.

“We are proud to be supporting this research program,” Eric Blair, chief commercial officer at Andelyn, said in the release. “We are wholly committed to making an impact when it comes to manufacturing therapies, particularly when it comes to treating rare disease.”