Contract research news in brief
Outsourcing-Pharma.com rounds up recent developments among contract research organisations, including WuXi PharmaTech, AMRI, Physiomics, Biofocus and Metabolon.
Private equity firm Warburg Pincus has taken a 5.4 per cent stake in China's WuXi PharmaTech, which recently withdrew from plans for a public offering of up to 10.1m American depositary shares.
"Warburg Pincus not only will strengthen our investor base, but more importantly we believe that it will provide strategic and business assistance to us," said WuXi's chief executive, Ge Li.
Albany Molecular Research Inc (AMRI) says it has more than doubled the capacity of its Science Park III facility in Singapore with a 10,000 square foot laboratory expansion for its medicinal chemistry unit and the opening of an in vitro biology lab.
The in vitro biology group will test compounds synthesized by the chemistry teams and deliver potency data using cell-based or biochemical assays, allowing the firm to carry out complex drug discovery projects in a shorter time.
AMRI said it expects to hire at least 70 additional chemists and biologists to staff the Singapore facility over the next three years to meet increasing demand.
The US National Institutes of Health (NIH) have extended their agreement with Galapagos' service division BioFocus DPI for the operation of the Molecular Libraries Small Molecule Repository (MLSMR) until December 2010.
The MLSMR acquires and stores compounds under the contract with NIH and distributes these compounds for high-throughput biological screening throughout the NIH's academic network in the US.
According to the terms of this agreement, Galapagos will receive more than $9m (€5.7m) over the course of the two-year extension.
Systems biology specialist Physiomics has been contracted to perform two new cancer-related research projects for Eli Lilly, after a successful collaboration earlier this year in a study of cancer cellular processes for drugs targeting the cell cycle.
UK-based Physiomics will perform two new projects for in silico simulations in the field of oncology for Lilly. The first has the aim of finding a way to identify patients who are likely to respond to an unnamed Lilly drug, while the second will investigate the mechanistic link between various biomarkers and certain other Lilly compounds.
Metabolon has expanded its multi-study agreement with Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma, giving the latter 'preferred' access to its biochemical profiling services, and forged new collaborations with Pfizer and the University of Texas. Metabolon's platform technology is used to analyse biological samples for the discovery of markers and pathways associated with drug action and disease.
Mitsubishi Tanabe has committed several upcoming research studies to Metabolon, and the two companies say they are in the process of publishing joint study results in peer-reviewed publications. Meanwhile, Pfizer is tapping the company's metabolomics platform for its bioprocess division, and will use it to try to optimise bioprocesses and reduce manufacturing costs. The agreement with the University of Texas will focus on finding new biomarkers relating to diabetes.
CeeTox, a CRO based at Michigan University's Business Technology and Research Park, has been awarded state-funding of $150,000 in order to hire Pfizer staff that lost their jobs when the multinational shut down some of its R&D functions in Kalamazoo, Michigan, last year. Ceetox, which tests the toxicity of potential new drugs, has agreed to hire three former Pfizer scientists. Two other companies in the area have agreed to similar deals.
Synomics Pharmaceutical Services, a US CRO which provides bioanalytical, stability and analytical testing services for the pharmaceutical industry, has cleared an inspection of its facilities and operations in Wareham, Massachusetts, by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
"Warburg Pincus not only will strengthen our investor base, but more importantly we believe that it will provide strategic and business assistance to us," said WuXi's chief executive, Ge Li.
Albany Molecular Research Inc (AMRI) says it has more than doubled the capacity of its Science Park III facility in Singapore with a 10,000 square foot laboratory expansion for its medicinal chemistry unit and the opening of an in vitro biology lab.
The in vitro biology group will test compounds synthesized by the chemistry teams and deliver potency data using cell-based or biochemical assays, allowing the firm to carry out complex drug discovery projects in a shorter time.
AMRI said it expects to hire at least 70 additional chemists and biologists to staff the Singapore facility over the next three years to meet increasing demand.
The US National Institutes of Health (NIH) have extended their agreement with Galapagos' service division BioFocus DPI for the operation of the Molecular Libraries Small Molecule Repository (MLSMR) until December 2010.
The MLSMR acquires and stores compounds under the contract with NIH and distributes these compounds for high-throughput biological screening throughout the NIH's academic network in the US.
According to the terms of this agreement, Galapagos will receive more than $9m (€5.7m) over the course of the two-year extension.
Systems biology specialist Physiomics has been contracted to perform two new cancer-related research projects for Eli Lilly, after a successful collaboration earlier this year in a study of cancer cellular processes for drugs targeting the cell cycle.
UK-based Physiomics will perform two new projects for in silico simulations in the field of oncology for Lilly. The first has the aim of finding a way to identify patients who are likely to respond to an unnamed Lilly drug, while the second will investigate the mechanistic link between various biomarkers and certain other Lilly compounds.
Mitsubishi Tanabe has committed several upcoming research studies to Metabolon, and the two companies say they are in the process of publishing joint study results in peer-reviewed publications. Meanwhile, Pfizer is tapping the company's metabolomics platform for its bioprocess division, and will use it to try to optimise bioprocesses and reduce manufacturing costs. The agreement with the University of Texas will focus on finding new biomarkers relating to diabetes.
CeeTox, a CRO based at Michigan University's Business Technology and Research Park, has been awarded state-funding of $150,000 in order to hire Pfizer staff that lost their jobs when the multinational shut down some of its R&D functions in Kalamazoo, Michigan, last year. Ceetox, which tests the toxicity of potential new drugs, has agreed to hire three former Pfizer scientists. Two other companies in the area have agreed to similar deals.
Synomics Pharmaceutical Services, a US CRO which provides bioanalytical, stability and analytical testing services for the pharmaceutical industry, has cleared an inspection of its facilities and operations in Wareham, Massachusetts, by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
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