CIT and Biomodels forge transatlantic tox and efficacy team
The collaboration combines France-based CIT’s toxicology testing offering with Boston, US-headquartered Biomodels’ drug candidate efficacy modelling capabilities.
The key to the new partnership was CIT’s US subsidiary, Boston-based CITox Inc, which was established in September to move the French contract research organisation (CRO) closer to its US clients.
Bernard Galat, head of CITox, set the Biomodels deal in context, telling Outsourcing-pharma that: “To be successful in the current market it is necessary for a company to be truly global.
“While CIT generates substantial revenues from North America, it was recognized that a local presence was necessary to achieve maximum penetration in this market.”
Galat also said combined toxicity and efficacy testing will provide developers with “a more robust IND package and the information to make an earlier and more informed decision to kill a molecule or advance it to the clinic.”
He went on to predict healthy demand for this type service going forward, reasoning that: “staffing cuts at pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies has created a pent-up demand that can only be satisfied through outsourcing as the economy improves.”
Transatlantic benefits?
Galat rejected the idea that the distance between CIT and Biomodels will be a disadvantage, instead arguing the accord will improve turnaround times which he said have always been “equal to or better than our US based competitors.”
“Our US clients have found that CIT facilitates monitoring so that running a study in France is no more difficult or expensive than working across the USA. Working with Biomodels enhances that capability and when compared to Asian competitors the time savings, ease of monitoring and quality of product is unparalleled.”
He also said CIT is open to other partnership deal, explaining that: “The key to growth and sustainability in this highly competitive and commoditized market is to offer services that differentiate us from our competitors and provide our clients with unique, cost effective services.”
“We are currently evaluating a number of exciting potential alliances that could come to fruition in 2011. Stay tuned.”
