Agilent Technologies is expanding its oligonucleotide manufacturing infrastructure with a new laboratory in Boulder, Colorado, aimed at advancing and scaling emerging production technologies for oligonucleotide therapeutics.

The company said the additional laboratory space will initially be used to develop enzymatic ligation capabilities, adding capacity to its existing oligonucleotide operations in Colorado and complementing manufacturing capabilities in Canada. The expansion comes as drug developers continue to advance oligonucleotide-based medicines, including small interfering RNA (siRNA) and antisense oligonucleotides, through clinical development and toward commercial manufacturing.

Agilent’s Advanced Therapeutics Division provides development and current good manufacturing practice (cGMP) manufacturing services for oligonucleotide therapeutics. The new Boulder facility is intended to provide a dedicated setting for developing manufacturing processes that could eventually be scaled for customer programs.

“Additional laboratory space gives our teams a dedicated environment to further develop enzymatic ligation capabilities and respond to evolving customer manufacturing needs,” says Blake Unterreiner, Vice President and Business Unit Leader of Agilent’s Advanced Therapeutics Division.

The initial work at the Boulder laboratory will center on enzymatic ligation, a manufacturing approach in which enzymes are used to join shorter oligonucleotide fragments into longer molecules. Agilent is evaluating the technology as a complement to solid-phase phosphoramidite synthesis, a widely established approach for producing oligonucleotides. Depending on factors such as molecule characteristics, manufacturing scale and technical requirements, the company said the two approaches could provide developers with additional options when selecting a manufacturing process.

The new laboratory is part of Agilent’s broader effort to support oligonucleotide programs across development and manufacturing. The company expects initial customer programs to begin using the Boulder facility in November 2026, subject to applicable operational and regulatory requirements.

Agilent’s expansion also reflects the increasing complexity of manufacturing next-generation oligonucleotide therapeutics, where developers may need production strategies tailored to individual molecules and commercial-scale requirements.

The company has not disclosed the specific customer programs expected to enter the new laboratory in November. Agilent says its oligonucleotide capabilities span development through clinical and commercial-scale manufacturing, with operations in the US and Canada.

For more information, visit Agilent Advanced Therapeutics.