CRX.L Regulatory News (CRX)

8 July 2011

Cyprotex PLC

("Cyprotex" or the "Company" or the "Group")

Cyprotex to Offer Drug Transporter Services in Partnership with Solvo Biotechnology

Cyprotex PLC (AIM:CRX), the preclinical ADME-Tox services company, and Solvo Biotechnology, the transporter company, today announce that they have commenced a partnership in which Cyprotex will offer Solvo Biotechnology's drug-transporter services to their customers.

Drug transporters are a family of proteins that actively move substances across cellular membranes, both into and out of the cells. In the past few years they have been recognised as playing an important role in pharmacokinetics, and have been identified as responsible for toxicities and drug-drug interactions that were previously not understood. In 2009 the US FDA established the International Transporter Consortium to determine which drug transporters should be investigated as part of an Investigational New Drug (IND) filing. The consortium's findings were published in a white paper in 2010, setting important additional standards for including drug transporter assays among the existing preclinical ADME Tox assessments.

Solvo Biotechnology has specialized in drug transporters since 1999 and offers the world's largest array of drug-transporter assays. Adding these assays to Cyprotex's portfolio of ADME Tox assays gives Cyprotex customers access to virtually any ADME Tox assay needed.

Dr. Katya Tsaioun, Cyprotex's Chief Scientific Officer, remarked, 'The role of drug transporters in causing toxicities and drug-drug interactions has only recently become understood. The US FDA has moved quickly in recommending in vitro testing for drug-transporter activity at the preclinical stage. As Cyprotex is committed to serving all of our clients' preclinical ADME-Tox needs, and as Solvo Biotechnology has over a decade of focus on transporters and deep expertise in this field, Cyprotex is delighted to partner with Solvo Biotechnology for providing these services which pharmaceutical companies need for de-risking their drug candidates before human clinical trials.'

Erno Duda, Solvo Biotechnology's Chief Executive Officer commented, 'The recommendations of the International Transporter Consortium for including drug-transporter assays among the other ADME Tox assays needed prior to filing for Investigational New Drug status have dramatically increased demand from drug-discovery companies wanting to include transporter assays along with their other ADME Tox assays. Our partnership with Cyprotex makes it easy for Cyprotex's ADME Tox customers to include transporter assays along with the other ADME Tox assays they need. Cyprotex's ability to offer our assays to their customers at the exact time of need will benefit all parties involved.'

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Cyprotex PLC

Cyprotex is the world's largest contract research organisation (CRO) specialising in ADME Tox, which is the analysis of the Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, Excretion, and Toxicity properties of potential drugs, cosmetics, and agrochemicals. It is the only company in the world with in-house capabilities for both in vitro (test tube) and in silico (computer modelling) ADME Tox. Cyprotex was founded in 1999 and listed on the AIM in 2002. It has laboratories in Macclesfield, Cheshire, UK (near Manchester), and Watertown, Massachusetts, USA (near Boston), making it one of only three ADME Tox CROs with international operations.