Immunicon, AstraZeneca enter research, master services agreements

By E. Janene Geiss

Philadelphia, Aug. 7 - Immunicon Corp. said Monday that it entered into two agreements with AstraZeneca UK Ltd. for research on biomarkers and for laboratory services in drug development.

The research agreement establishes collaborations in three distinct scientific research projects related to the development of methodologies to identify and quantify certain cell types circulating in blood that are potentially valuable biomarkers for targeted therapies, according to a company news release.

"The ability to molecularly characterize circulating tumor cells is a key advance in the era of targeted therapies. Our collaboration with Immunicon will significantly enhance our research base in this core area," Donna Johnstone, preclinical director of cancer translational medicine at AstraZeneca, said in the release.

In the second deal, a master laboratory services agreement governs laboratory services that Immunicon said it will perform in connection with various drug development programs in the fields of cancer and infectious diseases.

Initially, five projects will be initiated under this agreement in which Immunicon said it will provide enumeration and characterization of circulating tumor cells and circulating endothelial cells as well as certain molecular characterization of these rare cells.

Immunicon is a Huntingdon Valley, Pa., biopharmaceutical company focused on cancer disease management.

AstraZeneca is a London-based pharmaceutical company.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.