Genomics Collaborative and Qiagen Genomics say they’re working together on a large-scale genotype study with the hope that it might enable drug companies to “predict individual patient response with regards to drug absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion outcomes,” says William Hirschman, vice president of business development for GCI.
Qiagen will use its genotyping technology to study GCI’s profile database in what is believed to be the most extensive survey of its kind. “We have a database that contains detailed clinical information matched to DNA samples, serum samples, and tissue samples in over 75,000 profiles,” says Michael Pellini, president and CEO of GCI. The idea is to compare patients with favorable drug responses to those with negative responses across wide-ranging geographic and ethnic populations.
“We’ll ultimately look at a number of different classes of medications,” Pellini says. Initial studies are expected to take just a few months, and continued exploration will be based on the early results. Further details were not released.
Pellini says the collaboration helps everyone. “We believe we can shorten the timeline significantly by collaborating,” he says, adding that this should make both companies more competitive and strengthen public image of the industry.
— Meredith Salisbury