Drug discovery research involves the study of the pharmacokinetics of new pharmaceutical compounds by investigating the absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion (ADME) of the drug using both in vitro and in vivo assays. NoAb BioDiscoveries is a drug discovery organization that helps to shape and optimize the drug discovery process by providing specialized and proprietary research services. These include in vivo pharmacokinetics studies, in vitro ADME assays and gene expression assays and are explained in detail at www.noabbiodiscoveries.com. NoAb BioDiscoveries strives to accelerate the drug discovery process by continuously developing innovative tools and technologies that can better characterize the pharmacokinetic properties of new drug candidates, optimizing the selection of viable candidates for further pre-clinical and clinical development. One of these innovative technologies is DTExâ"¢ technology.
DTExâ"¢ is a proprietary micro-array based technology developed by NoAb BioDiscoveries that allows investigators the ability to survey the effects of drug treatment on the expression levels of genes involved in ADME pathways. These genes which act as "gatekeepers" include phase I and phase II enzymes such as cytochrome P450 enzymes and phase III transporters whose regulation greatly influences the pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and drug-drug interactions of many therapeutic agents and environmental xenobiotics. The induction of these enzymes and transporters is considered to be a liability in both drug treatment and drug development and therefore it is vital to develop drugs that are not inducers of these enzymes in order to avoid potential adverse drug interactions. By using DTExâ"¢ technology to monitor the expression levels of these genes, valuable information on the biological response to therapeutic compounds can be obtained, thereby helping drug development to take place.
NoAb BioDiscoveries' DTExâ"¢ technology allows the simultaneous survey of the gene expression levels of 145 ADME associated genes. The DTExâ"¢ micro-array consists of genes involved in drug metabolism, conjugation or transport allowing the investigation of both reported and unreported drug effects on gene expression. The DTExâ"¢ genes have also been selected as members of individual, drug-associated gene expression pathways which serve as both an internal control for induction or suppression of the genes and as a measure of drug selectivity or specificity in the modulation of the DTExâ"¢ gene expression. The objective of DTExâ"¢ micro-array technology is to establish whether gene expression patterns can be used as surrogate markers of adverse drug reactions or predictive markers of potential drug-drug interactions and helps to address questions such as:
" Which transporter genes are induced or suppressed by my compound?
" Which cytochrome P450 enzymes are induced or suppressed by my compound?
" Is the DTExâ"¢ signal indicative of potential acquired rug resistance or adverse drug reactions?
Pharmaceutical developers can supply RNA for DTExâ"¢ gene expression analysis in human cell lines and primary hepatocytes or the entire experiment can be accurately and reliably conducted at NoAb BioDiscoveries' state-of-the-art research facility located in the heart of North America's key biotech hubs. You receive all the raw data files, normalized data files, color matrix plots, hierarchical cluster plots, fold induction tables and a data summary document. For more information on the various formats of DTExâ"¢ gene expression analysis that includes DTExâ"¢-ABC, DTExâ"¢-ADME and DTExâ"¢-custom, please visit www.noabbiodiscoveries.com. DTExâ"¢ technology can be used through out the drug discovery process from target validation to post-market studies and provides valuable information that helps to shape and customize the drug discovery process in accelerated timelines.
