Dr Thomas Ryll | Senior Director, Cell Culture Development
Biogen Idec

Thomas completed his PhD in Biochemistry and Biotechnology in 1992 at the Technical University of Braunschweig, Germany. After a year PostDoc he joined Genentech in 1993. At Genentech he was involved in the development of the first generation of commercial antibody processes and other recombinant proteins including Fc-fusions, proteases, viral antigens and growth factors. In 2000 Thomas joined Abgenix as Senior Scientist and Associate Director, Cell Culture Development. His responsibilities included development of Abgenix’s proprietary expression system based on cell:cell fusion, development of efficient media and fed-batch process formats for antibody production, scale-up, CMC management and facility designs. In 2003 Thomas joined Tanox as Director and Senior Director of Process Development and member of the management team. Responsibilities included all activities from cell line generation, cell culture, purification and formulation development and analytical support. In 2006 Thomas joined Biogen Idec as Director and Senior Director of Bioprocess Development and is currently acting in this role. His responsibilities encompass all aspects of cell culture development including expression technology, cell line development, process development, scale-up, technology transfer and manufacturing support. His special interests include the alignment of biology and engineering aspects for development of efficient manufacturing processes.