A new UK-wide research project is aiming to make the production of CAR T cell therapies faster, more efficient, and more environmentally sustainable.
Supported by a grant from Innovate UK’s Sustainable Medicines Manufacturing Innovation Programme, the EcoCAR project is led by the Royal Free Hospital and brings together NHS organisations, academic institutions, and industry partners.
EcoCAR’s goal is to tackle some of the most pressing challenges in manufacturing CAR T cell therapies. CAR T cell therapy is an advanced form of treatment in which a patient’s own immune cells are genetically altered to recognise and eliminate cancer cells. These therapies are already transforming care for people with blood cancers such as leukaemia and lymphoma, but they remain complex and resource-intensive to produce.
EcoCAR focuses on simplifying and improving how these therapies are made. The project will explore ways to streamline manufacturing processes, as well as reduce turnaround times and cut energy use.
University College London (UCL) will be leading project management, alongside developing vector technology (a key component in modifying cells) and carrying out preclinical studies to better understand CAR T cell function. UCL will also provide oversight for governance structures, monitor progress against defined milestones, and ensure effective integration across the various scientific, clinical, and industrial workstreams. UCL will also facilitate communication between partners and support strategic planning to enable timely and coherent project delivery. Through its project management role, UCL contributes to ensuring that the consortium operates efficiently and that the project’s objectives are achieved within the proposed timeframe and scope.
The Royal Free Hospital will leverage its experience as the UK's foremost academic GMP and one of the most experienced clinical CAR-T manufacturers worldwide to perform early process development. Autolus Therapeutics will contribute insights from its existing commercial manufacturing platform and guide the development of a scalable, market-ready process. Meanwhile, MicrofluidX Ltd (MFX) will apply its bioreactor technology to introduce a “one-pot” manufacturing approach, designed to reduce handling steps and improve efficiency.
Imperial College London’s process systems engineering lab will use advanced computational modelling to map and optimise the CAR T supply chain, identifying opportunities to improve flow, reduce delays, and lower costs. Biopharm Services, which has developed, commercialised, updated, and maintained a leading process modelling platform for over 15 years, will complement this work by quantifying the environmental footprint of the manufacturing process, helping the project measure and minimise its impact. Cell Therapy Catapult plays a critical role by developing metrics to assess the sustainability of cell therapy manufacturing.
Overall, the EcoCAR project aims to advance more sustainable models of cell therapy manufacturing while supporting the broader adoption of CAR T cell therapies in clinical practice. By fostering innovation and environmental responsibility, it will contribute to the UK’s leadership in cutting-edge biomedical research and sustainable healthcare solutions.