Ark Therapeutics signs a letter of intent with Merck KGaA unit

UK-based Ark Therapeutics (LON: AKT) shares rose nearly 6.5% on the back of the good news that it has signed a non-binding letter of intent with EMD Millipore USA (a division of Germany’s Merck KGaA [MRK: DE]), to enter into a collaborative agreement in the field of viral based bioengineered vaccines and other live viral products manufacturing.

Key elements of the collaboration focus on production optimization of viral based bioengineered vaccines and other live viral products for pilot and production scale and the installation of these processes at Ark’s Good Manufacturing Practices production facility in Kuopio, Finland. Additionally, the parties plan to establish a GMP BSL-2 suite in the Kuopio facility equipped with EMD Millipore process technology to enable Ark’s wider routine use of EMD Millipore process technology in its manufacturing services business.

David Venables, Ark’s chief executive, commented: “We are delighted to announce this collaboration with EMD Millipore which combines Ark’s unrivalled expertise in commercializable GMP manufacturing processes for live viral products and EMD Millipore’s pre-eminent position in bioprocessing integrated solutions and high-performance devices.”