Taconic to distribute Yecuris Corporation human xenograft FRG™ KO mouse technologies in the US and Europe
Hudson, New York and Portland, Oregon, February 26, 2013 – Taconic and Yecuris Corporation announce the formation of an exclusive marketing and distribution agreement to provide access to the Yecuris FRG™ KO animal portfolio. The agreement allows Taconic to promote and sell FRG™ primary cell xenograft animal models and HepaCur™ human primary hepatocytes developed by Yecuris Corporation for use in in vivo and in vitro applications.
Yecuris Corporation is a member of Oregon Bio.
“Taconic and Yecuris are coming together to provide the knowledge and materials necessary for scientists to increase human relevance in their drug and vaccine research by using models that contain human primary cells. Distribution of the animals and the education to use them is a critical step in the maturation of this field, which has been hindered by a lack of access. The combination of the two companies’ portfolios of technologies represents a significant advance in the mainstreaming of these next generation models, and provides some insight into the future direction of scientific advances,” said John Bial, president and chief executive officer of Yecuris.
“Joining forces with Yecuris to provide ready access to their advanced technologies and products is Taconic’s most recent step in building its portfolio of humanized model solutions,” noted Todd Little, Taconic’s president and chief executive officer. “Taconic is strategically positioned to support our customers with the most relevant genetic and cellular humanized models for translational studies in oncology, metabolism, immunology and toxicity. Taconic now combines its expertise and experience in genetic humanized models with Yecuris’ humanized liver models and human hepatocytes to provide our customers an even more complete solution for early stage drug development and testing.”
Humanized animal models have been developed through genetic modification to provide specific attributes that are genetically human. The Taconic tADMET™ portfolio contains a unique collection of genetically humanized mouse models for genes involved in drug metabolism and disposition and allows for improved predictions of drug responses in humans. Yecuris technologies have been used to generate animals that allow the engraftment of human primary cells, specifically liver and immune, that replaces the native animal organ systems. The modified animals have a variety of human attributes passed on from the human cells, including human metabolism and toxicity profiles, and the ability to become infected with human pathogens and viruses like malaria and hepatitis. The combined marketing of both genetically and tissue humanized mouse models by Taconic provides seamless access to an unparalleled portfolio of translational mouse models, in vitro tools and related services.
About Taconic
Taconic is an industry leader providing life science solutions to researchers worldwide for more than 60 years. Taconic accelerates drug discovery by providing fast, convenient access to a full suite of more than 4,000 off-the-shelf in vivo mouse and rat models, as well as custom designed models. Taconic provides study-ready cohorts, including tissue or genetically humanized models, supported by reliable data that can advance early development work. Our scientific expertise, innovative technology and breeding services, enables researchers to confidently partner with Taconic for their entire spectrum of in vivo resource needs. Additional information about Taconic is available at www.taconic.com.
About Yecuris Corporation
Yecuris Corporation is a Portland, Oregon based biotechnology company that develops animal xenograft technologies to support primary human cell and organ engraftment for use in drug discovery, toxicology, infectious disease, and cell therapy applications. Visit us at our website: www.yecuris.com.
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For Taconic media inquiries:
Susan Fogt
Marketing Communications
518.697.3962
susan.fogt@taconic.com
For Yecuris inquiries:
Dianne Danowski-Smith:
503.201.7019
dianne@publixnw.com