PAT4CGT Functional Prototype Developed

The PAT4CGT project reached its first milestone in September when our partners at Jobst Technologies constructed our first at-line monitoring prototype. The expert team at Jobst Technologies adapted the company’s renowned sensor technologies to build the prototype that will ultimately help us to scale the CGT manufacturing process.

The sampling line within the integrated sensor platform will be implemented as a modular concept consisting of a two-stage sterile barrier consisting of a check valve and peristaltic pumps in pinch valve mode as well as several sensors connected in series. The peristaltic pump drives fluid sampling and rinsing.

PAT4CGT’s first at-line monitoring prototype.

The sensor for oxygen and pH will be mounted adjacent the reactor to minimize oxygen and carbon dioxide permeability from the sampling lines and ports. For the fluidics module, a prestored reagent reservoir and a split-and-recombine mixer which minimizes diffusion length is implemented into the platform prototype. The sensors are arranged downstream within the fluidic cassette.

Fluid flow is generated by applying the stepper motors of the peristaltic pumps which are controlled by a microcontroller and driving circuit with minimal footprint for integration. Hereby, flow rates (150 nl/min – 180 ul/min) sufficient for precise sampling and efficient rinsing of the flow cell are achieved.

Within this integrated platform, the sensor and fluidic components will be integrated into a functional cassette for GMP-compliant analytics in cell therapy manufacturing.