TransGenRx gets $30 million contract with Argentinean company
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Baton Rouge-based TransGenRx, a biotech company that produces specialized proteins, has landed a contract that could be worth up to $30 million to make human growth hormone for Argentinean pharmaceutical company Cassara.
The contract calls for TransGenRx to make 66 pounds of human growth hormone, which will take 12 to 18 months, company president William C. Fioretti said today. TransGenRx will be paid roughly $1 million for every kilogram, or 2.2 pounds, of the hormone.
Human growth hormone is used to treat adults with low levels of the hormone to increase their bone density and muscle mass. The hormone is also used to treat abnormally short children.
The biotech firm was founded in 2002, based on patents developed at the LSU AgCenter. Originally, the company planned to change the genes in chickens so they can produce specialized proteins in their eggs. But that production method is still being perfected, Fioretti said. The Cassara hormones will be made using cell cultures.
Fioretti said TransGenRx expects the first contract with Cassara to lead to additional work. The company is also negotiating contracts to produce specialized proteins, some of which are used in the treatment of cancer, with a handful of other firms.
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