Biologics are complex large molecules derived from living organisms or manufactured from cells, and they have inherent structural heterogeneity. Indeed, proteins, given their chemistry, are the “most structurally complex and functionally sophisticated molecules known.”1
Thus, the analytical testing required to support Chemical, Manufacturing, and Controls (CMC) activities of biologics is highly sophisticated, and is becoming more so as the modalities of biologics grow more complex (with antibody drug conjugates, conjugate vaccines, PEGylated proteins, fusion proteins, gene therapies, and cell-based therapies).