MDS Pharma Services Announces Collaboration with Compendia Bioscience, Inc. to Deliver Novel Solution for Oncology Drug Developm
28 Aprile 2009 - 2:00PM
PR Newswire (US)
KING OF PRUSSIA, PA, April 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- MDS Pharma
Services, a leading provider of innovative drug discovery and
development solutions, has formed a strategic collaboration with
Compendia Bioscience, Inc. to deliver a novel solution,
OncoPredictor(SM), to improve the development of drugs to treat
cancer. OncoPredictor combines MDS Pharma Services' OncoPanel(TM)
with Compendia Bioscience's Oncomine(TM) for a solution that will
help identify cancer patient populations most likely to respond to
a new or existing cancer therapy. As a result, research is more
efficient and therapies can be targeted to those most likely to
benefit. "MDS Pharma Services is pleased to collaborate with
Compendia Bioscience to develop OncoPredictor(SM), a solution that
will help clients developing cancer treatments to do so more
quickly and effectively," said MDS Pharma Services President David
Spaight. "Our pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients seek to
determine the efficacy of their compounds across cancer genotypes
and patient phenotypes. OncoPredictor(SM) will help provide the
answer with technology for information-based lead selection,
predictive in vivo study design and biomarker development."
OncoPanel(TM) offers high content screening of up to 240 cancer
cell lines for sensitivity to specific cancer drugs and drug
combinations. Compendia's Oncomine, a database of cancer genomic
profiles coupled with a Web-enabled analysis application, provides
genomic characterization and comparison of cancer cell lines to
2,000 disease signatures from more than 27,000 reference patients
based on molecular, pathological and histological sub-types. The
OncoPredictor(SM) system will analyze drug sensitivity and
resistance of novel drugs and drug combinations to identify
associations with both disease sub-types and underlying tumor
biology. "Based on our experience working with the top companies
pursuing development of cancer treatments, we believe this
integrated solution could revolutionize cancer genomics for drug
development," said Compendia CEO and Co-founder Dan Rhodes, Ph.D.
"MDS Pharma Services clearly provides unique experience and
capabilities, and we do not believe we could have identified a
better partner to co-develop this solution." MDS Pharma Services is
the only contract research organization with firsthand experience
of delivering high-quality cellular data on such a large scale
using the exact growth and culture conditions from which the
genomic data in Oncomine(TM) was generated. Clients rely on MDS
Pharma Services for this large-scale screening because of its
proven experience in developing reliable cell line culture and
growth conditions, providing consistent data for the integration of
genomic and functional information. "Compendia Bioscience is a
leader in the field of cancer genomics," Mr. Spaight added. "Its
Oncomine(TM) is a standard platform in the industry, and we believe
our joint solution - OncoPredictor(SM) - can also become a
cost-affordable industry standard in oncology drug development for
both large and small companies." MDS Pharma Services
Pharmacology/DMPK division offers biochemical, cellular/functional,
ADME/DMPK and in vivo assays for use in identifying lead compounds,
profiling for selectivity, determining the potential for adverse
events, evaluating efficacy and establishing proof of concept. To
help speed lead optimization earlier in the discovery phase and
streamline the surest path to clinic, the team offers extensive
capabilities in molecular and cellular pharmacology, including more
than 800 assays, multiple assay methodologies, high throughput
screening with robotic automation, and expert assay development. To
view the extensive catalog of discovery assays, visit the MDS
Pharma Services' Pharmacology/DMPK Website at
http://discovery.mdsps.com/Catalog/. About Compendia Bioscience's
Oncomine(TM) Oncomine(TM) combines a rapidly growing compendium of
more than 30,000 expertly curated cancer genomic profiles with a
sophisticated analysis engine and a powerful Web application for
data mining and visualization. Oncomine(TM) facilitates target
discovery and validation and supports the prioritization of tumor
populations for drug development. To learn more, go to
http://www.compendiabio.com/products/products.htm About Compendia
Bioscience, Inc. Compendia Bioscience is dedicated to harnessing
the global collection of high throughput molecular data to provide
researchers with the data and analysis tools necessary to validate
biomarker and gene target discoveries, better understand mechanisms
of disease, and optimize clinical outcomes. For more information,
go to http://www.compendiabio.com/. About MDS Pharma Services'
OncoPanel(TM) MDS Pharma Services' Oncopanel(TM) offers
high-throughput cellular drug profiling, relying on deep experience
in cell culture and high content imaging to systematically screen
compounds across hundreds of cancer cell lines simultaneously.
About MDS Pharma Services MDS Pharma Services, a business unit of
MDS Inc., is committed to delivering quality service on-time. We
offer a full spectrum of resources to meet the drug-discovery and
development needs of the pharmaceutical and biotechnology
industries. With numerous facilities strategically located around
the world, we apply advanced scientific and technological expertise
throughout the drug discovery and development process - from lead
optimization, pre-IND research, early clinical research
(bioequivalence, phases I-IIa) and bioanalysis through to global
clinical development (phases IIb-IV), central lab and centralized
cardiac services. For more information, visit our Website at
http://www.mdsps.com/. About MDS Inc. MDS Inc. (TSX: MDS; NYSE:
MDZ) is a global life-sciences company that provides market-leading
products and services that our customers need for the development
of drugs, and the diagnosis and treatment of disease. We are a
leading global provider of pharmaceutical contract research,
medical isotopes for molecular imaging, radiotherapeutics, and
analytical instruments. MDS has more than 5,000 highly skilled
people in 29 countries. Find out more at http://www.mdsinc.com/ or
by calling 1-888-MDS-7222, 24 hours a day. DATASOURCE: MDS Inc.
CONTACT: MEDIA: Mary C. Coyle, Communications Manager, (610)
405-2325, ; INVESTORS: Kim Lee, (416) 213-4721,
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