Draper Secures ARPA-H Funding to Revolutionize Cold-Chain Management for Cell Therapies

In a major advancement for the medical industry, Draper Laboratory has been awarded a significant funding grant of up to $7.3 million from the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H). This award is aimed specifically at Phase 1 of the agency's ambitious BioStabilization Systems (BoSS) program, an initiative that seeks to innovate the production, storage, and transportation of cell-based biologic drugs at room temperature.

The ARPA-H initiative, with a total funding commitment of $87 million over four years, focuses on addressing a significant barrier in the proliferation of biologics—namely, the necessity for maintaining a strict “cold chain” from the manufacturer to the patient. This requirement necessitates that these sensitive products be stored at ultra-cold temperatures, complicating logistics and increasing costs. As a result, treatment accessibility has been limited to specialized facilities, making it difficult for patients in need.

The Reversible Ambient Temperature (RAB) team, which is part of the BoSS initiative, comprises Draper as the Administrative Lead and Likarda as the Technical Lead. The collaboration also includes prominent entities such as Case Bioscience, CPSI Biotech, Fresenius Kabi, and MiNK Therapeutics, as well as Dr. Sabrina Spencer from the University of Colorado. Together, they aim to develop technologies that eliminate the dependency on cold storage systems for delicate cell therapies.

Biologics encompass a wide array of medical treatments derived from living organisms, including cells and proteins. These treatments play a pivotal role in targeting specific complications in the human body, like autoimmune disorders and various types of cancers. The intrinsic fragility of biologics makes them particularly susceptible to temperature fluctuations; thus, they have traditionally required constant refrigeration.

Draper's innovative approach through the BoSS project seeks to empower these biologics with the capability to be stored at room temperature, drastically reducing logistical difficulties and costs. This transformative shift is described as making cell-based therapies as easy to ship and store as standard medications like aspirin, achieving what team members call a “200-degree leap” from extreme cold to ambient temperatures.

Kathryn Brinsfield, Draper's vice president and general manager for Biotechnology Systems, highlighted the significance of this advancement, stating,