Bio Products Laboratory USA Launches Plasma Therapies, Enters COVID-19 Fray
Albumin. A protein made by the liver.
Plasma. The liquid portion of blood that carries cells and proteins, including albumin, throughout the body.
In plasma, albumin binds to many important substances such as hormones and medicines to take them where they need to go. Albumin also helps with tissue growth and healing.
Albuminex 5% and Albuminex 25%. Bio Products Laboratory (BPL) USA’s albumin injection therapies derived from human plasma that can treat several different life-threatening conditions.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has recently approved the Durham-based biotech company’s Albuminex 5% and Albuminex 25% to treat six different conditions:
- hypovolemia (low plasma levels in blood that could be caused by excessive bleeding due to a traumatic injury, major surgery, vomiting or diarrhea)
- ascites (abdominal swelling most often related to liver disease)
- hypoalbuminemia (low albumin level in blood)
- acute nephrosis (sudden inflammation of kidneys)
- acute respiratory distress syndrome (fluid buildup in lung air sacs)
- cardiopulmonary bypass (a technique in which heart and lung functions are temporarily managed by machines during surgery).
Albuminex is BPL USA’s third product launch in the past five years.
“We are proud of the journey that our products have taken in the U.S. market,” said Bob Rossilli, U.S. president and global chief commercial officer of BPL. “With our expanding product offerings, we continue to show our commitment of building a patient-focused, clinically differentiated portfolio of products to treat unmet medical needs in the areas of immunology, rare bleeding disorders and critical care.”
BPL USA is part of a global company, Bio Products Laboratory, which has a 60-year history in plasma research, technology and manufacturing. Worldwide headquarters and manufacturing facilities are in Elstree, United Kingdom.
Search for COVID-19 therapies and plasma-based possibilities
Plasma-derived therapies are used to treat serious and rare diseases, which often have few other treatment options.
BPL has joined the recently formed CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance, a partnership of world-leading plasma companies that are combining their research and resources in the hunt for a COVID-19 plasma treatment. The Alliance hopes to develop an immunoglobulin (Ig) therapy, CoVIg-19, that could help protect vulnerable groups until a vaccine can be successfully developed, clinically tested and supplied.
Plasma from people who have recovered from COVID-19 – known as convalescent plasma – could be a key part of the fight against the new coronavirus. The potential Ig therapy requires plasma donated by people who have fully recovered from COVID-19 since their plasma contains antibodies against the virus. Once the plasma is donated, it could be used to make the potential COVID-19 therapy or be directly transfused into patients.
“I am proud of the noble work that all healthcare workers are doing during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Rossilli. “We recognize that unprecedented times call for unprecedented effort.”