A chimeric transformation in real estate and life sciences

Drawing a line from ancient myths to modern medicine, there is something chimeric about cell and gene therapy as well as the infrastructure that supports its research and production. Known for the potential in treating serious genetic diseases, cell and gene therapy is central to the development of many leading-edge, life-saving cancer therapies, among which chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy is a form of cell therapy that leverages the power of a patient’s own immune system to fight malignant cells.

UK-based biotech company Autolus Therapeutics specializes in an advanced and autologous version of such treatment. Much like blood donation, Autolus draws T-cells (a type of white blood cells) from a patient, takes them back to the lab and genetically reengineers them to produce receptors on their surface called CARs, which are designed to bind to specific antigens on the cancer cells. After the transformation, these cells are then cultivated and grown into the millions in the laboratory before being injected back into the patient. They ultimately become a living drug that can latch onto and kill cancer cells with the target antigen.

CAR T-cell therapy has been shown to not only effectively shrink or eradicate leukemias, lymphomas and myelomas, but also keep the cancer at bay for many years because of the protective immune response they activate.

The research and production work of biotech companies like Autolus mandates a highly specialized, clinical grade laboratory environment. What is considered state-of-the-art is a lab that meets all the specifications detailed in good manufacturing practice (GMP). GMP is a quality assurance system for pharmaceuticals manufacturing facilities, defined by a rigorous set of rules on a lab’s airflow, location, dimensions and configuration as well as testing, operational and production procedures it follows. The governing system is put in place to assure compliance to high standards and safeguard a clean, safe and consistent production environment.

There are few investor-developers with GMP expertise in the UK, but our real estate life sciences team is one of them. It is this expertise that enables us to develop niche assets in this fast growth sector, which is bringing along significant rental growth opportunities.

This allows us to build a life sciences development portfolio with the potential to offer investors attractive risk-adjusted returns in the long run.

The cell and gene therapy market – i.e., the tenants of labs and other life sciences real estate facilities – is growing fast. Estimates vary but the growth rate is expected to be somewhere between 15% and 30% per annum,^1,2 over the next few years, with the UK and Germany being the most prominent European centers capturing this growth.³ Set to build on and support that growth, our team’s development-led approach is centered on the science and caters to wet lab and manufacturing facilities. While experience in developing research and development (R&D) labs is more common, GMP-certified labs are painstakingly technical to build and on top of that, they are in short supply.

Our scale and experience from being one of the largest real estate asset managers in the world equips us with the ability to deploy a significant level of capital, required to purchase real estate assets and undertake construction that is complex and intricate. As a life sciences specialist, we are an established player with a relevant track record and well developed network, ready to address the mismatch between supply and demand and help companies like Autolus on their long and complex road to commercialization.⁴

For Autolus, we worked exclusively with Reef Origin, a best-in-class development and engineering manager that specializes in the technical construction of a GMP building, and built the UK’s first completed CAR T-cell manufacturing development from the ground up. Part office, part research lab and part production line, this GMP-grade lab is nothing short of chimeric.

During its initial build, 20% of the building was intentionally set aside as fallow when the research was still in the product discovery stage. As its CAR T-cell therapy candidates entered clinical trial and production needs picked up, we fitted the space out into a segregated cleanroom. A controlled production environment that filters pollutants like dust, airborne microbes and aerosol particles is critical for cell and gene therapy manufacturing, which the initial design accounted for, ensuring there is room for Autolus to grow. The Autolus building reached practical completion on time and within budget in July 2023 against a challenging macro backdrop.

For all that, our craft also goes beyond the laboratory, beyond the real estate. Autolus and several of our other cell and gene therapy projects are located within the UK’s Golden Triangle. Stevenage is in a strategic location inside the so-called Triangle. It has been shaped by the UK government as a leading edge cell and gene therapy hub, ranking as the largest in Europe and the third largest in the world behind two stateside hubs.

The UK government is committed to pushing cell and gene therapy forward and building on an established ecosystem in Stevenage. Two government-backed bodies, Stevenage Bioscience Catalyst (SBC) and Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult (CTC), are embedded in the life sciences community and actively support the growth of the sector in many different ways. SBC runs incubator and accelerator programs and offers a unique short-term, rent-free lab hotel option for early-stage startups, whereas CTC has set up 12 GMP-grade cleanrooms and the world’s first sandbox environment to support scaling up production using automated, digital and robotics technologies tailored for the industry.

We work closely and maintain strong relationships with both SBC and CTC. Complementing the government’s consistent support to the industry, we bring in financing from the private side together with real estate and infrastructure options to enable the sector to thrive. The limited number of GMP labs in the country has created bottlenecks for the industry, particularly in the Golden Triangle where there was a 30% gap in mid-2023, and working with SBC and CTC gives us a view into the pipeline of development opportunities and helps us better understand where the needs are.4 Our collaboration alongside pre-let discussions with potential tenants allow us to create a best-in-class offer to enhance the companies’ ability to incubate and scale and ultimately move towards full commercial production.

All told, providing and tailoring the real estate and infrastructure to the wildly imaginative field of cell and gene therapy is an onerous undertaking. Understanding the complexities, what drives these companies, and how to analyze industry trends allow us to create future-proofed buildings that offer these companies what they need both today and in the future.

Through technical craft and precision as well as real estate acumen, we build and transform buildings to allow research, development and manufacturing to take place that are fit-for-purpose, well located and environmentally friendly. Real estate has a key role to play to help facilitate the growth and expansion of the life sciences sector.

1. Source: Cell And Gene Therapy Market Size, Share, Growth, Trends, Industry Analysis Forecast 2028
2. Source: Standardization, more capacity may be needed as CGTs grow - Thoughts from the Centre | Deloitte UK
3. Source: Global Insights: The Rapid Growth of Cell and Gene Therapy Clinical Trials in 2024 - Clinixir
4. Source: Golden Triangle Lab Space Demand Continues Despite Shortage Of High-Quality Stock | United Kingdom | Cushman & Wakefield (cushmanwakefield.com). Accessed in September 2024