US-based discovery and development specialist Charles River Laboratories (CRL) has formally announced a partnership with diagnostic products and services company Metabolon that will enhance CRL’s capabilities in cancer drug development.
Headquartered in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, Metabolon has built its business around a biochemical profiling platform for the global analysis of complex biological samples to identify biomarkers and pathways associated with drug action and disease.
The collaboration with CRL will yoke these resources to Charles River’s expertise in preclinical cancer research and cancer animal models, helping clients to understand their investigational agents better and identify lead compounds, as well as advancing clinical trial design and patient selection, the latter noted.
The partnership was officially announced at the annual meeting of the American Association of Cancer Research in Chicago, US.
Together, the two companies are offering:
• Elucidation, identification, characterisation and validation of drug-target candidates.
• Expertise in preclinical studies using validated in vitro and in vivo models.
• Pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD), tumour-growth delay, tumour-growth inhibition, survival, combination and adjuvant study designs.
• Assessment of lead chemistries, lead identification, optimal dose, optimal combinations, sensitivity/resistance patterns, and new indications for existing compounds.
