Dive Brief:
- Contract research organization Charles River Laboratories has boosted its early stage services, adding in new discovery screening capabilities to help companies accelerate the drug discovery processes.
- The expanded services include a high throughput absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion system to support lead identification in North America and Europe, along with additional pharmacokinetic services in San Francisco and the Netherlands.
- The contract research organization provides support for discovery, early development and manufacturing. It operates 80 facilities in 23 countries and says it was involved in development of 80% of the drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2017.
Dive Insight:
As drug R&D costs spike and development becomes more complex, pharmas are increasingly relying on the specialist skills of CROs and contract development and manufacturing organizations. This helps companies cut costs by relying on companies that already have specialized skills and equipment at hand.
"In early discovery research, screening is an essential component of any successful program," said Birgit Girshick, EVP of discovery and safety assessment at Charles River, in a statement. "With access to industry-leading technologies, we're able to provide our clients strategic guidance, ultimately working toward accelerating their programs."
The CRO uses the Apricot Designs' Dual Arm high speed autosampler, which speeds up the process of sampling for high-throughput absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion tests. Combined with the additional pharmacokinetic capabilities, this allows companies to identify potential leads at an early stage, and could help to cut attrition.
As part of the increasing consolidation in the contract space, Charles River bought out contract services provider MPI Research in an $800 million deal earlier this year. Acquiring MPI gives Charles River further testing, toxicology and discovery services to increase its offerings for early-stage development.