AGC Biologics, Inc., a global biopharmaceutical Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO ^*1) and a subsidiary of AGC Inc. (Tokyo; President: Yoshinori Hirai), has entered into an agreement with Teikoku Pharma Co., Ltd. (Higashikagawa City, Kagawa; President: Misako Fujioka) to provide development and manufacturing services for the drug substance of a protein-based therapeutic candidate targeting lumbar disc herniation.

Under the agreement, AGC Biologics will provide microbial-based process development as well as GMP ^*2-compliant drug substance manufacturing services for “KTP-001” (recombinant human matrix metalloproteinase-7: rhMMP-7 ^*3), currently under development by Teikoku Pharma.

KTP-001 is designed to be administered directly into the intervertebral disc to support the natural regression of herniated tissue and may serve as a new therapeutic option for lumbar disc herniation. In this project, AGC Biologics will transfer a cell bank ^*4 established at its Heidelberg, Germany site to its Chiba site in Japan, where it will perform process development and GMP manufacturing for clinical trial use.

Under its medium-term management plan, AGC plus-2026, the AGC Group has identified “Well-being” as one of the social values it aims to create through its products and technologies. AGC Biologics operates an integrated global GMP system across Japan, the United States, and Europe. Through this platform, the company continues to expand its CDMO services across a wide range of modalities. It aims to support customers from early-stage development through commercial production and to contribute to the realization of innovative biopharmaceuticals.

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About the TEIKOKU SEIYAKU CO.,LTD News release
Announcement of License Agreement for KTP-001 (Recombinant Human Matrix Metalloproteinase-7), a Protein Preparation Designed to Induce Spontaneous Regression of Lumbar Disc Herniation | Teikoku Seiyaku Co.,Ltd.

About the AGC Group
AGC Inc.(Headquarters: Tokyo, President & CEO: Yoshinori Hirai) is the parent company of the AGC Group, a world-leading materials company that provides architectural, automotive and display glass, chemicals, ceramics, life science services, and other high-tech materials and components. Based on more than a century of technical innovation, the AGC Group has developed a wide range of cutting-edge products and services
. The AGC Group employs some 53,000 people worldwide and generates annual sales of approximately 2.1 trillion Japanese yen through business in about 30 countries. For more information, please visit www.agc.com/en