Charles River (CRL) Expands 3D In Vitro Services Via New Deal
Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. CRL entered into an agreement with German biotech company, CELLphenomics. Through the partnership, Charles River clients will have access to CELLphenomics’ proprietary 3D tumor model platform, PD3D, expanding Charles River’s 3D in vitro testing services to further optimize oncological approaches for its clients.
The recent development will fortify the company’s Discovery and Safety Assessment (DSA) segment.
About CELLphenomics
CELLphenomics offers the world’s largest collection of complex in vitro models of rare and ultra-rare tumors like sarcomas or thymomas. The service-based biotechnology company has a continuously growing biobank, comprising more than 500 complex in vitro models from more than 20 tumor entities.
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CELLphenomics has developed a custom mid-throughput screening platform that blends complex cell culture models with advanced automation and a streamlined analysis pipeline. The proprietary, precision medicine PD3D platform offers mid-throughput efficacy testing, drug combination screening, toxicity profiling, target validation, drug sensitivity correlation with clinical response and biomarker identification.
News in Detail
Leveraging CELLphenomics technology, Charles River will now have a novel in vitro option for identifying therapeutics for rare and ultra-rare disease types.
The agreement will also give CELLphenomics access to Charles River’s genomically annotated and in vivo characterized cancer model database to develop PD3D models. The database is comprised of more than 700 tumor models, including patient-derived xenografts (PDX), cell lines and cell line-derived xenografts. These models have been extensively profiled for histological features, molecular data and sensitivity to standard-of-care compounds, allowing a precise selection of suitable tumor models for preclinical anti-cancer agent testing.
The biological advantages of PDX include the retention of histological and genetic characteristics of the donor tumor and the preservation of cell-autonomous heterogeneity. The merge of both biobanks will significantly increase the translational relevance of the in vitro and in vivo platforms offered by Charles River CELLphenomics.
More in the News
Charles River is excited about the integration of CELLphenomics’ tumor model platform into the existing portfolio of products and services of the Discovery Services business. The company offers a range of cancer cell-based assays, including PDX assays and assays representing the entire tumor microenvironment. Hence, therapies are not only tested for their effect on real patient materials but also for their interaction with the human immune system.
Industry Prospects
Per a Research report, the global 3D cell culture market was valued at $1.42 billion in 2022 and is expected to witness a CAGR of 14.1% by 2032.
Recent Development in the DSA Segment
Last month, CRL and Aitia, a leader in the application of Causal AI and Digital Twins, announced a strategic partnership, which includes the co-development of PDX Digital Twins for in vivo oncology research. Through the partnership, Aitia will have access to Charles River’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered drug solution platform, Logica, for the optimized discovery and early development of multiple therapeutic programs for neurodegenerative disease and oncology.
In September 2023, Charles River and Related Sciences announced a multi-program collaboration agreement to apply Logica across several previously undrugged targets in Retated Sciences’ portfolio, including cancer immunotherapy, autoimmunity and inflammatory diseases.
Price Performance
Over the past six months, Charles River shares have gained 1.6% against the industry’s decline of 2.7%.
Zacks Rank and Key Picks
Charles River currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Some better-ranked stocks in the broader medical space are Haemonetics HAE, Insulet PODD and DexCom DXCM. Haemonetics and DexCom each presently carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), and Insulet sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
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