About PlantForm
PlantForm Corporation is a privately-held Canadian biopharmaceutical company focused on the rapid development and production of specialty antibody and protein drugs using our proprietary vivoXPRESS® manufacturing platform. The plant-based vivoXPRESS® system makes it easier, faster and less expensive to produce approved biologic drugs for novel indications and new markets.
The company’s vivoXPRESS® technology uses genetically modified plants to produce biopharmaceuticals in fully contained greenhouse environments. Our plant-based technology delivers high drug expression levels and mammalian-type glycosylation (to eliminate the risk of an unwanted immune system reaction). vivoXPRESS® also provides the following key advantages compared to other fermentation systems for biologic drug production (e.g., mammalian cell culture):
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rapid drug development & production timelines
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versatile manufacturing platform (for new product development)
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unlimited scale-up capability
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low manufacturing costs (approximately one-tenth of mammalian-cell systems), and
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the ability to efficiently manufacture products that are problematic in other systems
See our vivoXPRESS® manufacturing platform diagram.
The PlantForm research team continues to advance the vivoXPRESS® platform, which originated at the University of Guelph through the work of Dr. J. Christopher Hall, a PlantForm co-founder. All relevant intellectual property is protected by six families of patent filings, with three patents issued to date.
PlantForm’s pipeline features both innovator and biosimilar/biobetter products, including:
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trastuzumab for a novel indication in nerve regeneration after acute trauma
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biosimilar ranibizumab, a plant-produced version of the age-related macular degeneration (AMD) drug Lucentis®, which had C$4.8 billion in sales in 2015
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biobetter versions of two additional biologic drugs which are recombinant replacement versions of plasma-derived drugs
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an innovator antibody for treatment of ricin exposure
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recombinant butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE), an enzyme used as preventative medicine for people vulnerable to attack by nerve agents, organophosphates or other stimulants.
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innovator antibodies for HIV/AIDS, funded by the Government of Canada and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
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innovator antibodies for treatment of Ebola virus (Sudan strain), with financial support from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-IRAP) and in collaboration with the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID)
PlantPraxis
PlantPraxis is a joint venture formed in 2014 by PlantForm and PharmaPraxis of Brazil to develop, manufacture and commercialize biosimilar and/or biobetter versions of up to seven key biopharmaceuticals for the Brazilian market, using PlantForm’s proprietary manufacturing system.
PlantForm is interested in establishing partnerships with other companies to develop additional targeted biosimilar and innovator drugs.
Our Commitment
PlantForm is committed to producing high-value biopharmaceuticals in an environmentally and socially responsible manner to improve the quality of life and survival of patients with cancer and other critical illnesses.