Bio similar and innovators - the battle of the two is a long story . In this presentation am trying to explain the merits nd demerits of each with available evidence
3. The Move From Urinary FSH to rFSH
• Better ovarian response.
• Lower FSH doses.
• Fewer dosage adjustments.
• Shorter treatment time.
• No risk of contamination / infection.
4. Gonadotropin
• Advantages of recombinant FSH
• High purity
• High specific FSH activity (about 10,000
IU/mg protein)
• Identical amino-acid sequence to natural
FSH
• No contamination with urinary proteins
of undetermined origin
• No LH activity
• Good source control, providing good
batch-to-batch consistency
• Disadvantages of urinary FSH
• Variable purity
• Variable specific FSH activity
• Amino-acid sequence of more acid
profile as in postmenopausal women
• May contain >95% proteins
of urinary
origin
• There is always some LH contamination
• No absolute source control, resulting in
batch-to-batch inconsistency.
• Collection of urine is cumbersome
6. Comparison – Batch to Batch Consistency
Urinary gonadotropins (-20%,+25%) Follitropin alfa (2%)
1. Bassett et al. Reprod Biomed Online 2005;10:169–177; 2. Driebergen et al. Curr Med Res Opin 2003;19:41–46
7. 1. Bassett et al. Reprod Biomed Online 2005;10:169–177
2. Driebergen et al. Curr Med Res Opin 2003;19:41–46
Conventional
Bioassay
High
variability
(~20%)
in vivo (rat)
Novel analytical
method
Physiochemical
technique
Minimal batch-to-
batch variability
(1.6%)1,2
Gonadotropins: an overview Product Quality: Filled by
Mass (FbM)
8. R-FSH
• Better ovarian response.
• Lower FSH doses.
• Fewer dosage adjustments.
• Shorter treatment time.
• No risk of contamination / infection
• More oocytes
• Better quality embryo with HMG ?
• More or less equal pregnancy rates
9. What are Biosimilars?
Biosimilar designates a copy version of an approved
original biologic medicine (innovator or reference
product) whose data protection has expired.
Ranke M.B. Horm Res 2008;69:22–28
Approval of biosimilar products does not substantiate
interchangeability with reference products
Biosimilars are Only “Similar”
to innovative reference products,
Not Identical
biologicals that contain essentially the same API as an original biomedicine, and that share
its quality, safety and efficacy, may be developed: the so-called similar biologic medicines,
or biosimilars
10. Changes in the manufacturing process alter the characteristics of
biological drugs
Mellstedt et al. Ann Oncol 2008
Cloning
and protein
expression
Possibly same
gene sequence
Possibly different
vector
Different cell
expression system
Protein
production,
purification
and validation
Different cell line,
growth media
and method
Different cell
line and
growth media
Different
operating
procedure
Different binding
and elution
conditions
Different methods,
reagents and
reference
6
The Process Is the Product
“It is Impossible to replicate same product using a
different process”
11. Sources of variation between manufacture of innovator
biopharmaceutical and Biosimilars
Cell Expansion
Cell Production in
bioreactors
Recovery through
filtration or
centrifugation
Purification through
chromatography
Characterization &
Stability
Purified Bulk Drug
11
Different cell
line, growth
media,
method or
expansion
Different cell
line, growth
media,
bioreactor
conditions
Different
Operating
conditions
Different
binding &
elution
condition
Different
methods,
reagents,
reference
standards
Sources Of Variation
Horm Res 2008;69:22–28
Impact of small differences in either biological or manufacturing process could
lead to potentially serious safety issues for patients and different clinical efficacy
13. Immunogenicity: a problem to be resolved
Bioquality, Biosimilar Special Edition 2012
Much work still needs to be done in
order to prove that biosimilars are as safe and
effective as their originator products
-- Int Urol Nephrol (2007) 39:261–266
14. Concerns
Loss of efficacy
Immune effects such as anaphylaxis or allergic reactions
Can be severe and potentially lethal
Nephrol Dial Transplant (2006) 21 [Suppl 5]: v9–v12; NATURE BIOTECHNOLOGY 2004;22(11):1357-9
Even if the biosimilar product has the same gene
sequence, vector, host cell line, culture conditions
and purification methods as the innovative protein,
it can still differ substantially in its biological and
clinical properties.
16. Biosimilars are not the same….
• Definition: “biopharmaceutical drug designed to have active properties similar to one that has
previously been licensed.”
• "copycat drug makers use an innovator's research data to make biosimilars“ – Oxford Dictionaries
Biosimilars are not like Generics – they are not identical but similar,
because biosimilars are produced using different cell lines and production
processes
Biosimilars are approved following an abbreviated process – they thus, lack the extensive
clinical and in-market data of the originator drug
– Much smaller number of patients included in phase III trial (~150-250)
– Need only to show comparable effect / non-inferiority within margin
– Pharmacodynamic studies are generally not required, the equivalence of biological
effect is not established
Given that biosimilars are permitted to be different from the originator drug, they have a
different safety & efficacy profile
– Monitoring required by EMA as long-term efficacy and safety is unproven
1
17. Advantages ??
• The lower investment needed for biosimilar development compared
with the original drug, along with increased competition resulting
from biosimilars entry into the market, has led to a reduction of the
average price of biologic drugs that may contribute to optimizing
healthcare expenditure as for the experience gained in other
therapeutic areas (Flodmark et al., 2013; Tsao et al., 2014).
• Treatments such as IVF may also benefit from such trends (Foxon et
al., 2015; Ripellino et al., 2015) and, therefore, patient access to
infertility care will ultimately improve (Aitken, 2016).
18. • Biosimilar recombinant follitropin alfa preparations versus the
reference product (Gonal-F®) in couples undergoing assisted
reproductive technology treatment: a systematic review and meta-
analysis
Chua et al. Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology (2021) 19:51
19.
20. Objective
• Live birth has been increasingly identified as the standard clinical
approach to measure the success of infertility treatment
• Since regulatory approval of biosimilar preparations is governed by a
distinct pathway which varies between countries, it is important from
a physician and patient perspective to consider all available evidence
to evaluate if clinically meaningful differences exist in quality, safety,
or efficacy outcomes after use of biosimilar preparations in
comparison with the reference product
21. Study _ meta-analysis
• 292 records
• 17 RCT
• Primary outcome
• Live birth
• Clinical pregnancy
• Ongoing pregnancy
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27. Biosimilars are not the same…..
• They are not identical but similar, because are
produced using different production processes.
Biosimilar are
Not Generics
•Small number of patients in phase II-III trials
•Only show comparable effect/ non-inferority
•Pharmacodynamic studies are generally not required, the
equivalence of biological effect is not established
Biosimilars lack of
extensive clinical data
•Given that biosimilars are permitted to be different from
originator drug, little differences generated a different safety &
efficacy profile
•Close monitoring required by EMA as long-term efficacy and
safety is unproven
Biosimilar have
different
Safety & Efficacy
Editor's Notes
Discovery timelines of urine-derived and human recombinant gonadotropins
Over the years, the development of preparations containing FSH has been guided by a quest for control over variability derived from the drugs.
The journey began in 1930, when Cole and Hart showed that product derived from pregnant mare serum had potent gonadotrophic activity. When this product failed to produce consistent results and induced adverse events, pig and sheep extracts were utilized by Mazer and Ravetz in 1946.
Gemzell and Bettendorf introduced the use of pituitary FSH between 1958-1963. With the discovery of 12 CJD cases, potentially linked to the use of PFSH, the product was discontinued.
In 1961 Lunenfeld reported the first successful pregnancy using hMG developed by Donini. This product’s purity was 5%.
Urofollitropin was developed in 1966, using affinity purification processes. It contained 1 IU LH/75 IU FSH and 95% contaminants.
Once monoclonal antibody technology was applied, highly-purified urofollitropin was developed, resulting in a product with specific activity of 9000 IU/mg protein, compared to 100-150IU/mg protein seen with the former generation of gonadotropins.
In the early 90s, the first pregnancies were reported following development of the fourth generation of gonadotropin products, recombinant FSH.
The conventional method used to quantify the activity of FSH in gonadotropin products is the Steelman–Pohley assay, which is an in vivo rat bioassay. As well as being costly and subject to ethical concerns related to the use of animals, this technique has an inherent variability of up to 20%. In 2003, Driebergen et al. demonstrated the batch-to-batch consistency of r-hFSH (follitropin alfa) in terms of specific activity, isoform pattern and sialylation profile. Following this, a novel physiochemical method was developed for measuring FSH content (by protein mass).
What are biosimilars?
Reference
Ranke M.B. New Preparations Comprising Recombinant Human Growth Hormone: Deliberations on the Issue of Biosimilars.Horm Res 2008;69:22–28
Biological drugs the final product, with the potential to affect therapeutic efficacy and safety in the clinic. are never entirely reproducible. The manufacturing process for biological drugs is highly complex and dependent on living cells. Even small changes in the manufacturing process or production conditions can affect
Differences may be introduced at virtually every step of the manufacturing process, from the initial protein source to the extraction/purification stage, as illustrated in the slide.
1. Mellsted et al. Ann Oncol 2008;19:411419
ELUTION -To extract (one material) from another, usually by means of a solvent.
How does a reference or innovator differ from Biosimilars?
A Biosimilar is defined by characteristics related to both the molecule (product-related) and its manufacturing process (process-related) .
Both need to be adequately addressed .
The higher complexity of biopharmaceuticals relates not only to the manufacturing process but also to the substances themselves
Biosimilars should have full knowledge of replicating the innovator’s manufacturing process right from Full chemistry and manufacturing data , Physico-chemical properties, Biological activity , Purity and impurities. (as they will not have access to the original proprietary knowledge owned by innovators)
Reference
Ranke M.B. New Preparations Comprising Recombinant Human Growth Hormone: Deliberations on the Issue of Biosimilars.Horm Res 2008;69:22–28
The science behind the differential regulatory requirements for biosimilar, original biologic and generic medicines. The basis of the demonstration of equivalence between a biosimilar and the reference product relies on the physicochemical and biological activity comparability assessment (quality module). This is represented in the figure by means of a wider basal layer (dark red bottom layer). Conversely, the main demonstration of a favourable risk-to-benefit balance of an original biological resides in the late clinical trials in patients (dark blue top layer). Finally, given the fact that the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) of a chemically-synthesized medicine can be virtually identically replicated, the generic development pathway may be considerably abridged (as represented by narrow green layers). In addition to the pre-authorization studies, an active pharmacovigilance program needs to be set for biosimilars approval as for any new biological or chemical entity. PK = pharmacokinetic. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)
Biosimilars are SIMILAR, not THE SAME
Biosimilars are approved following an abbreviated process, therefore have a different safety and efficacy profile.