Laurus Labs bets on cell and gene therapies, eyes CDMO role

Laurus Labs CEO Satyanarayana Chava.

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Laurus Labs is aggressively investing in cell and gene therapies, looking to become a key manufacturing partner in the burgeoning field, the Hyderabad-based company's chief executive officer Satyanarayana Chava has told Moneycontrol.

The pharmaceutical company, primarily known for its active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacturing and contract development services (CDMO), has already invested approximately Rs 550 crore in subsidiary Laurus Bio, CAR-T therapy company ImmunoACT and in a gene therapy collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur among others.

The move stems from a board decision to back disruptive technologies, particularly in areas outside Laurus Labs’ core expertise, by supporting startups and academic research.

"This idea of investing in disruptive technologies came from one of the discussion in a board meeting," Chava said. "The science and areas where Laurus doesn't have expertise, we want to identify companies or start-ups in academia and support them".

Cell and gene therapies are used to treat diseases such as genetic disorders, including spinal muscular atrophy, haemophilia, and sickle cell disease, cancer and the so-called acquired illnesses by modifying cells and genes.

In cell therapy, healthy or modified cells are used to treat or prevent disease. Gene therapy focuses on fixing or replacing faulty to cure or help the body fight a disease. Some therapies are a combination of cell and gene approaches.

CDMO capabilities

Laurus' strategic goal extends beyond just investment returns. The company aims to leverage India's manufacturing prowess to serve global cell and gene therapy players targeting the Indian market.

"We believe eventually many companies outside India will use Indian manufacturing expertise for India market," Chava said. "That's where we are investing into this, to become a preferred manufacturing partner. That's the idea.”

Laurus is building a facility for Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)-grade viral vectors through its IIT-Kanpur collaboration to support its CDMO ambition.

Viral vectors are viruses engineered to lose their ability to cause disease while retaining their ability to infect cells. They act as delivery vehicles, carrying healthy genes to target cells to repair or replace faulty genes.

While acknowledging the long gestation periods associated with life sciences startups, Chava expressed optimism about India's growing biotech ecosystem, highlighting the convergence of IT, AI, and biotechnology.

"I think I also foresee in the next decade a lot of disruptive things will come up in biotechnology,” the CEO said. While venture capital in Indian biotech has lagged other sectors, it is now "catching up".

The investments are already showing some returns. Chava said that Laurus Bio and ImmunoACT are profitable. ImmunoACT, in which Laurus invested twice, is expanding its CAR-T operations and becoming a multi-product company.
CAR-T is an immunotherapy where a patient's T-cells are modified to target cancer cells.

"We have to do these things. These are investments for the future," Chava said.

Laurus also continues to invest internally in technologies such as flow chemistry and continuous manufacturing to support its core operations.

Flow chemistry refers to a method where chemical reactions occur in a continuous flow rather than in batches, improving the yields, safety and efficiency of the process.