Dutch biotechnology company Crucell N.V. announced that Genentech, Inc. is currently evaluating Crucell's STAR technology for the production of antibodies and other proteins.

In a joint evaluation programme that is funded by Genentech, Genentech and Crucell are investigating whether STAR technology can increase the production yields of Genentech's proprietary systems.

The first phase of the evaluation, now completed, evaluated production yields in screening assays. Based on these results, Genentech has decided to enter into a second phase, in which Genentech will test the effectiveness of STAR under scaled-down production conditions, a release from Crucell said.

If the final phase of the evaluation proves successful, Genentech has an option to sign a non-exclusive STAR license agreement, which will be the first license for the STAR technology since Crucell's acquisition of ChromaGenics in March 2004.

"We are pleased that Genentech is evaluating whether our STAR technology can improve Genentech's already highly sophisticated protein production systems," said Ronald Brus, president and CEO of Crucell.

STAR technology is a production technology that is particularly useful for the production of recombinant human antibodies and proteins. It has a potentially broad application and is effective for production of antibodies and proteins on mammalian cell lines such as Crucell's PER.C6 human cell technology and the widely used Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell line.

STAR technology contains genetic elements, called STAR elements that enable stable and high-yield gene expression important to recombinant antibody and protein production in mammalian cells. The technology has the potential to increase production yields, thereby reducing production costs.