Streamlining Cell Therapy Workflows: Integrating Microbubbles into the Cocoon® Platform

Published on Jun 5, 2025 Share

Imagine unlocking greater flexibility in your cell therapy workflow while preserving cell health, improving yield, and reducing complexity without overhauling your existing equipment. That’s precisely what Akadeum Life Sciences’ microbubble technology makes possible.

In a recent case study with the Lonza Cocoon® Platform, Akadeum’s GMP microbubbles enabled fully automated T cell enrichment from cryopreserved leukopaks—no magnets, beads, or compromise. Microbubble-based separation can modernize cell manufacturing while maintaining compatibility with closed-system, GMP-compliant workflows. Interested in testing our technology in your own lab? Learn more about our cell separation evaluation program.

What Are Microbubbles and How Do They Work?

Akadeum’s microbubble technology is a novel approach to cell separation that uses gentle flotation instead of magnets or time consuming centrifugation. These proprietary microbubbles are small, buoyant spheres functionalized with specific antibodies that selectively bind to unwanted cell types. Once bound, these non-target cells float to the top of the liquid suspension, where they can be easily removed, leaving the untouched target cell population behind.

Unlike magnetic systems, microbubbles do not require rare earth metals, bulky equipment, or complex workflows. This makes them especially attractive for teams aiming to streamline their processes. Because the target cells remain unbound and untouched, microbubble separation is particularly well-suited for sensitive applications such as T cell therapy, where cell phenotype and maintaining function are critical. In short, Akadeum’s microbubble technology enables efficient, reagent-based separation that is easy to automate, scale, and integrate without sacrificing performance.

Seamless Integration into the Cocoon® Platform

The Cocoon® Platform is a functionally closed, automated system designed to simplify and scale cell therapy manufacturing. Combined with Akadeum’s GMP-grade Human T Cell Leukopak Isolation Kit, the Cocoon® Platform enables automated microbubble-based T cell enrichment directly from cryopreserved leukopaks, without the need for additional equipment.

The process begins with the operator loading a leukopak and attaching two key components: a bag containing the antibody cocktail and a second bag containing Akadeum’s microbubbles. From there, the Cocoon® Platform automates every step of the enrichment process—including incubation, mixing, and fluid transfers—delivering enriched CD3+ T cells in about 40 minutes.

This streamlined approach supports a high degree of automation while preserving flexibility in downstream steps. Because microbubble-based enrichment uses negative selection, the resulting T cell population remains untouched and phenotypically unaltered. This preservation enables the use of tailored activation methods, like CD3/CD28 stimulation, following the specific protocols of individual labs or manufacturers.

The Performance Metrics Speak for Themselves

In the Lonza study, Akadeum’s GMP microbubble technology isolated T cells from quarter-sized cryopreserved leukopaks derived from six healthy donors. The results were run in duplicate by different operators to demonstrate the power and consistency of this integrated workflow. Results showed:

• High purity. Post-enrichment CD3+ cell populations ranged from 88% to 97%, from initial purities of 50% to 70%.
• Strong recovery. The microbubble enrichment process yielded 50% to  86% of total CD3+ T cells from the starting material.
• Minimal contamination. Non-target cells were effectively depleted, with CD14+ cells reduced to 1.7%, CD19+ to 0.5%, and CD56+ to 5.5%.
• Excellent viability. CD3+ cell viability exceeded 97% after enrichment across all donor samples.

Following enrichment, 1×10⁸ CD3+ cells were automatically transferred into the expansion chamber and cultured over nine days. The T cells expanded to approximately 2.6×10⁹ cells, maintaining over 90% viability and consistent CD4+ and CD8+ subset ratios throughout.

These results confirm that Akadeum’s GMP microbubbles are compatible with the Cocoon® Platform and deliver robust performance metrics that meet the demands of clinical-scale manufacturing.

Why This Matters: Advantages of Microbubbles for Automated Workflows

Akadeum’s GMP microbubble kits bring several unique advantages to automated cell manufacturing platforms—advantages that are increasingly important as the industry shifts toward closed, scalable systems.

Gentle, Label-Free Cell Enrichment

Unlike magnetic separation, which involves strong mechanical forces, microbubble separation is purely buoyancy-based. Unwanted cells are labeled with antibodies, bound by microbubbles, and gently floated away, leaving the desired cells untouched. This process helps maintain high viability and preserves native cell function, which is essential for downstream applications like genetic engineering, activation, and therapeutic dosing.

Modular Compatibility and Workflow Flexibility

Microbubble kits integrate easily into existing equipment because they don’t rely on specialized magnets or proprietary columns. In the case of the Cocoon® Platform, the integration required no hardware modifications—only standard fluid handling and incubation steps.

This plug-and-play compatibility supports flexible manufacturing strategies and allows researchers to customize downstream activation, transduction, and expansion protocols. By keeping the initial cell enrichment step flexible, microbubbles empower teams to maintain control over their therapeutic process.

It’s Time to Upgrade Your Cell Therapy Workflow

The successful integration of Akadeum’s Human T Cell Leukopak Isolation Kit – GMP into the Cocoon® Platform shows how high-purity, high-viability T cell enrichment can be achieved in a fully automated, closed system, without magnets or upstream hardware.

This same approach can be applied to various platforms that support fluid handling for cell therapy, making microbubble separation a flexible option across research, development, and GMP manufacturing settings.

Cocoon® Platform users can download the application note to see the workflow and results.

Are you exploring other ways to simplify and scale your T cell workflows? Contact our team of integration experts to discover how Akadeum’s microbubble kits can seamlessly integrate into your process.