Research

The TRI will be unique in Australia, as it has been designed to host all stages of the biopharmaceutical process from research conception to production and manufacturing.

This approach is a significant step forward in the following ways:

* Science can be directly translated into bedside applications in one location
* The biopharmaceutical industry can develop and grow, creating more jobs and greater career-long opportunities
* Treatments which are successfully trialled and reach commercialisation will be able to be produced and funded in Australia – guaranteeing profits will remain in Australia which can be reinvested in more research.

The TRI building will accommodate more than 600 researchers from the University of Queensland, Queensland University of Technology, Princess Alexandra Hospital and the Mater Medical Research Institute. Bringing the four research institutes together in the one location will allow for significant gains to be made through creating greater efficiencies in resourcing, research program allocation, funding and trials, all combining to create a much more streamlined approach. Initially, research will be focused on the more prevalent and pressing health concerns in society such as cancers, diabetes, HIV, malaria, and bone and joint diseases.

The TRI also has a clinical research node at the Mater Hospital and links to clinical research at the Princess Alexandra Hospital. In addition, the TRI is used by the University of Queensland School of Medicine for teaching and research.

International pharmaceutical company DSM Biologics will operate the biopharmaceutical manufacturing facility. The new biopharmaceutical manufacturing facility will:

* Assist new biological drug developers who seek to outsource their process development and API manufacture
* Provide cutting-edge technical and economical methods for producing biopharmaceutical compounds synthesised mammalian cell culture
* Enable early-stage research to be converted into robust, production-ready processes
* Be capable of testing at pilot scale before moving into the highly controlled GMP manufacturing environment required for human medicinal products
* Cater for mammalian cell culture up to 2000 litres, with the ability to accommodate expansions in the future
* Offer synergies with DSM Biologics’ existing CMO facility at Groningen, The Netherlands.