Overview

Filtration is a vital operation in biomanufacturing, supporting clarification, purification, and buffer exchange to ensure product quality and stability. While well-established in monoclonal antibody production, it is increasingly critical for novel biologics such as viral vectors.

This presentation highlights ultra scale-down (USD) and millifluidic technologies that mimic manufacturing-scale conditions using millilitre-scale volumes, enabling early, cost-effective process development. Case studies in continuous bioprocessing and lentiviral vector recovery demonstrate how process understanding improves yield and reveals key upstream-downstream interactions.

Drawing on chemical engineering principles, we show how batch-mode studies can inform continuous bioprocessing, streamlining development and enhancing scalability of next-generation biologics.

Speaker

Andrea Rayat, Associate Professor, University College London

Andrea is associate professor in bioseparations and downstream processing at University College London (UCL), with experience spanning both academia and industry.

She is the director of the BEng/MEng biochemical engineering programme and heads the teaching committee at the Department of Biochemical Engineering. Her research focuses on the development and application of ultra scale-down (USD) and millifluidic technologies to characterise and optimise primary recovery and purification operations for complex biologics, enabling robust process development and scalable biomanufacturing strategies.

She leads UKRI-funded research, including a BBSRC project on lentiviral vector production in collaboration with the MHRA and UCL’s Division of Infection and Immunity.

Andrea works closely with industry partners such as Cytiva, Biocatalysts, CSL Seqirus, Oxford Biomedica, and AstraZeneca. Her group’s innovations in membrane processing, primary recovery, and continuous bioprocessing support the development of scalable processes for monoclonal antibodies, enzymes, and gene therapies.

Recognised by IChemE and InnovateUK for impactful technology translation, she plays a key role in bridging academic research with industrial application. Her work supports bioprocess innovation aligned with regulatory and manufacturing needs, while also contributing to workforce training and knowledge transfer. She serves on scientific committees for leading international bioprocessing conferences.

The material presented has not been peer-reviewed. Any opinions are the presenter’s own and do not necessarily represent those of IChemE or the Biochemical Engineering Special Interest Group. The information is given in good faith but without any liability on the part of IChemE.

Time

12:00–13:00 GMT.

Software

The presentation will be delivered via Microsoft Teams. We recommend downloading the app from the Microsoft website, rather than using the web portal.