The two companies are expected to collaborate to establish a presence in Japan for DiscoveRx HitHunter products. B-Bridge International, will coordinate DiscoveRx's sales and marketing efforts by managing operations, logistics, and administration for DiscoveRx office.
The HitHunter cAMP assay is a homogeneous immunoassay where cAMP from cell lysates competes with ED-cAMP for binding to the anti-cAMP antibody. Upon antibody binding, the ED portion is incapable of association with EA with the lack of complementation resulting in a low signal. The amount of ED-cAMP available for complementation to EA in the assay is proportional to the concentration of cAMP available to compete for antibody binding.
In commenting on the deal, Sailaja Kuchibhatla, VP of business development for >DiscoveRx said that he believed the partnership would make its technology more accessible to Japanese life scientists by providing them with a higher degree of responsiveness and knowledgeable support.
Hiro Masumoto, B-Bridge CEO added: "We are happy to provide DiscoveRx with the resources to address the needs of the Japanese pharmaceutical market."
Japan is currently the 2nd largest pharmaceutical market with an estimated 15 per cent share of the world's Life Science research market currently valued at about €800m. Particularly for proteomics research, estimates have put Japan with a higher share of the world market.
Worldwide, the assay sector is projected to grow by more than 50 per cent to $700 million over the next five years as pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies seek methods to increase the efficiency of their drug discovery efforts