Immobilized cofactor regeneration systems to accelerate enzymatic API manufacturing - title: immobilized cofactor regeneration systems to accelerate enzymatic API manufacturing cascade biocatalysts INC

The National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, under the Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health, awarded Cascade Biocatalysts Inc. $306,871 on August 15, 2026, under CFDA 93.350 (National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences) to develop immobilized cofactor regeneration systems that accelerate enzymatic active pharmaceutical ingredient manufacturing.

Cascade will design, synthesize, and evaluate immobilized cofactor-regeneration resins to expand an enzyme immobilization platform, with emphasis on stability, activity, and reusability in representative pharmaceutical reactions. The work addresses a significant barrier to biocatalysis adoption: nearly half of all enzymes require cofactors, and poor enzyme stability under process conditions and complexity of cofactor recycling have restricted the use of redox enzymes and transferases in pharmaceutical synthesis. Success will establish a broadly applicable platform reducing barriers to implementing biocatalysis earlier in drug process development and increase efficiency and resilience of domestic pharmaceutical production.

Cascade Biocatalysts Inc., a Denver-based for-profit manufacturer, is the recipient. Place of performance is Denver, Colorado. The period of performance runs from August 15, 2026, through August 14, 2027.

Project summary/abstract enzymes - nature's catalysts - are recognized as a powerful approach for pharmaceutical manufacturing. Enzymatic processes can replace traditional chemical routes with methods that are more selective, operate under mild conditions, and open access to novel drug chemistries previously inaccessible to manufacturers. These advantages are especially important for strengthening U.S. Capacity to produce medicines, reducing reliance on global supply chains, and supporting less resource intensive domestic manufacturing. Despite these benefits, widespread adoption of biocatalysis is limited by the poor stability of enzymes under process conditions and the complexity of recycling required cofactors. Since nearly half of all enzymes require a cofactor, this challenge restricts the use of a large portion of nature's catalytic toolkit. To address this, we will expand an enzyme immobilization platform by incorporating cofactor regeneration systems directly into immobilized resins, enabling broader application of redox enzymes and transferases in pharmaceutical synthesis. Our research strategy includes the design and synthesis of immobilized cofactor-regeneration resins, followed by rigorous evaluation of stability, activity, and reusability in representative pharmaceutical reactions. Success will establish a broadly applicable platform that reduces barriers to implementing biocatalysis earlier in drug process development. The long-term objective is to accelerate the adoption of enzyme-based manufacturing routes, increasing efficiency and resilience of domestic pharmaceutical production while opening new opportunities for innovative medicines.