Influenza A Virus Production Following Quality by Design Principles

Establishing manufacturing processes for cell culture-based pharmaceutical products involves managing multiple parameters that can affect yield and efficiency, as well as process robustness and product quality. Implementing Quality by Design (QbD) principles can support process optimization, while streamlining the chemistry, manufacturing, and control aspects for regulatory approval. In this study, we mimic a QbD approach based on an influenza A virus production process using two clonal suspension Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cell lines with distinct characteristics. We performed a quantitative risk assessment including biological and technical parameters to identify the Critical Process Parameters (CPPs). To comprehensively study the effects and interactions of four CPPs, we used an Ambr 15 scale-down system following a Design of Experiments (DoE) approach. After data analysis and modeling, we obtained design spaces characterized by high robustness with a less than 1% risk of failure and even some indications for virus titer and yield improvement, while keeping process-related impurities such as DNA and total protein concentration low. These findings were subsequently verified at a more than 100-fold higher working volume. Taken together, our approach may stimulate ideas for the implementation of streamlined process development and regulatory approval in the field of viral vaccine production.