The Netherlands Center for the Clinical Advancement of Stem Cell and Gene Therapies (NecstGen) comprises a state-of-the-art facility for development and GMP manufacturing. NecstGen additionally offers cleanroom rental to allow organisations to maintain control of production while de-risking the capital investment required to do so.

NecstGen is open to the world and supports academic, small, and large industrial therapy developers to translate research and early-stage clinical programs into treatments for patients. One of NecstGen’s primary aims is to support the development of therapeutics for orphan diseases that may be underserved but are nevertheless catastrophic to people who suffer from them.

NecstGen is a mission-driven CDMO owned by Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC). This large-scale investment to support academia and industry was undertaken to address the barriers to entry for the creation of next-generation therapeutics, including:

• Investment: The high cost of capital equipment, facilities, research, and development.
• Limited capacity: Market availability of development and manufacturing slots.
• Know-how: Knowledge, expertise, and talent acquisition.
• Intellectual property: Complex ownership and control of the technologies required to realise new therapies successfully.

Leiden and The Netherlands

Being situated in Leiden has unique opportunities for NecstGen and its partners. Leiden Bio Science Park is one of the largest life science clusters in Europe. Leiden is a clinical, biotechnological, and pharmaceutical hub ideally positioned as a gateway to Europe and the world.

Furthermore, the Leiden ecosystem complements the progression of therapy developers, providing greenfield sites for expansion, existing facilities to lease, contract research/manufacturing, relevant suppliers, and logistics services locally.

The Netherlands, as a member of the EU, offers a uniquely open, business-friendly, stable, and English-speaking environment, having additionally been chosen to host the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in Amsterdam.

Amsterdam Schiphol airport is only 20 minutes from the LBSP and connects 327 international destinations directly (2018). The direct connections of Amsterdam Schiphol offer a clear logistical advantage to therapy developers when thinking about complex supply chains, patient material and therapy shipment.