Global challenges in the manufacture, regulation and international harmonization of GMP and quality standards for biopharmaceuticals

Biopharmaceuticals belong to a class of medicinal products whose active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) is manufactured using living systems such as microbial and mammalian cells. With the patent expiry of the originator biopharmaceuticals, a surge in the production of biopharmaceuticals in the form of biosimilars is to be expected. However, biopharmaceuticals are inherently more complex than conventional chemical-based pharmaceuticals, hence requiring a more complicated manufacturing process. This paper provides a brief overview of the biopharmaceutical manufacturing processes and reveals that most biopharmaceuticals share similar processes and considerations. The complex nature of biopharmaceuticals presents various manufacturing challenges such as the inherent variation in quality and demand for extensive process and product understanding. Furthermore, downstream processing bottleneck also presents another manufacturing challenge. A brief comparison of the good manufacturing practice (GMP) standards of various regulatory authorities (RAs) and international organizations (IOs) reveals that the standards are largely similar and appropriate in addressing the manufacturing challenges. This review is one of the few covering the biopharmaceutical industry and the regulatory framework of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN). However, GMP alone does not address regulatory challenges such as evaluation of biosimilarity, differing outlook on interchangeability and a growing occurrence of data integrity lapses. Solutions such as the implementation of Industry 4.0, improved harmonization of regulatory efforts and creating a culture of quality within the organization may help to address the forgoing challenges.