Charles River and Toxys Enter Agreement to offer ToxTracker® in North America

Charles River and Toxys have entered into an agreement to offer access to ToxTracker® in North America. ToxTracker is a suite of assays that allow rapid carcinogenicity toxicity hazard identification in novel and existing drugs, chemicals, and other substances.

With an extremely high level of sensitivity and specificity, ToxTracker can be used to quickly screen chemicals for genotoxicity. By combining multiple biomarkers, ToxTracker provides mechanistic insight into undesired properties of compounds.

The assay identifies a chemical’s increased cancer risk through both traditional markers, such as DNA damage, and alternative Modes-of-Action, including oxidative stress, protein misfolding, and general cellular stress. For Charles River’s clients, utilization of the ToxTracker assay can help mitigate risk of regulatory rejection by demonstrating the exact mechanism of genotoxicity.

ToxTracker has been extensively validated using reference compound libraries recommended by the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s Toxicity Forecaster (ToxCast) and the European Union Reference Laboratory for alternatives to animal testing (EURL ECVAM). Through this validation, ToxTracker has shown a very high sensitivity (94%) and specificity (95%) for the detection of genotoxic compounds.Additionally, ToxTracker’s versatility in identifying unsafe compounds provides applications across the pharmaceutical, agrochemical and consumer product industries.

“We are proud to work with Toxys to expand our portfolio of genetic toxicology assays. By providing our clients with access to the ToxTracker assays, we are improving their ability to deliver safe, effective compounds.” –Birgit Girshick, Corporate Executive Vice President, Discovery and Safety Assessment of Charles River

“When looking for a company to provide ToxTracker to the North American market, Charles River was an easy choice. Their deep industry knowledge and experience, coupled with an already robust portfolio of toxicology services, makes them the ideal partner for our innovative assays. We are excited to work together to bring ToxTracker to a wider audience.” –Giel Hendriks, CEO of Toxys

Source: Toxys