David Loong

Senior Consultant, Novel Modalities  Asia Pacific, Bioprocessing Strategy
​Merck Ltd

David Loong is our Senior Consultant Novel Modalities APAC, Bioprocessing Strategy. Previously, David held roles as a Senior Scientist in Biotech startups encompassing cell & gene therapy process development services, mAb discovery and preclinical development. He has an extensive track record providing contract research services as a Senior Research Scientist at AMRI Global, and as a product custodian for API GMP manufacturing at GSK. He holds a Ph.D in Synthetic Organic Chemistry from the Australian National University and a BTech(Hons) from Massey University (NZ) specializing in chemistry and process engineering.

Speech title & Synopsis

Planning for success: future-proofing the cell therapy process

Cell-based therapies have revolutionized the fields of cancer treatment and regenerative medicine. However their manufacturing poses a number of challenges, which is compounded by the lack of clear regulatory stances for CMC and inspection. We present an overview of quality, raw materials, facility and device considerations for the manufacturing of cell-based therapies.