The following list while not comprehensive, provides some key characteristics of biopharmaceuticals / biologics: 1. They are produced within ‘Living Cells’. 2. They are proteins in most cases although more recent developments have seen nucleic acids entering the fray as therapeutic agents. 3. They have very large molecular weights and by extension tend to be very large molecules. (This is … Read More
What is a Biopharmaceutical? (Part I): The Role of Genetic Engineering
‘ Biopharmaceuticals‘ or Biologics‘ as they are also known are medicines derived from biological sources as suggested by their ‘bio-‘ prefix. Technically this would include, medicines derived by extraction of natural products from plants, animals or even fungi. Penicillins would be one such noted example. Based on this broad definition, vaccines and blood products among others would also be considered … Read More