SHANGHAI, China and CUPERTINO, Calif., April 10, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cellular Biomedicine Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CBMG) (CBMG or the Company), a leading clinical-stage biopharmaceutical firm engaged in the development of immunotherapies for cancer and stem cell therapies for degenerative diseases and GE Healthcare Life Sciences China, today announced that they have established a strategic research collaboration to co-develop certain high-quality industrial control processes in Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell (CAR-T) and stem cell manufacturing. In connection with the collaboration, a joint laboratory within CBMG's new Shanghai Zhangjiang GMP-facility will be established and dedicated to the joint research and development of a functionally integrated and automated immunotherapy cell preparation system.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ab5bc905-b526-4e86-98bd-c96e306b5796

CBMG and GE Healthcare Life Sciences China plan to develop state-of-the-art automated CAR-T and stem cell manufacturing capabilities that build upon the accreditation of CBMG's GMP facilities in Shanghai, Wuxi and Beijing. The co-development activity will aim to standardize the delivery of cell manufacturing to potentially improve throughput, alleviate cost burdens and to minimize variability in cell production, which may increase the availability of engineered cells upon commercialization.
This partnership combines CBMG's scientific expertise in the manufacturing of CAR-T and stem cell production in China and GE Healthcare's renowned expertise in the design and development of innovative manufacturing technologies for the biopharmaceutical industry.

Recently, CBMG announced that its new Zhangjiang facility, together with an expanded Wuxi, and Beijing GMP-facilities, will have a combined 70,000 square feet for development and production. This will enable CBMG to conduct simultaneous clinical trials for multiple CAR-T and stem cell product candidates. At full production volumes, these facilities could support the treatment of up to 10,000 cancer patients and 10,000 knee osteoarthritis patients per year.

"GE Healthcare‘s selection of our facility to serve as their showcase site in China, credits our GMP stature and capabilities. Our team of scientists has spent years refining our manufacturing process to become one of the very few cell therapy companies with fully in-house integrated chemistry, manufacturing, and controls (CMC) processes for clinical grade CAR-T cells, plasmid and viral vectors bank production. We understand that one of the impending barriers to adoption of immuno-oncology and stem cell therapies is the logistics in manufacturing and we look to take an expanded role both domestically and potentially globally. We are pleased to be in a strategic partnership with GE Healthcare and look forward to showcasing our facilities and the mutual benefit this joint laboratory will bring," commented Tony Liu, Chief Executive Officer, CBMG.

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