Horizon Discovery has secured an exclusive license for 50 X-Man (gene X- Mutant and Normal) cell lines, which are focused on DNA repair, from Public University Corporation Yokohama City University.
The panel of cell lines, which includes many double knockout cell lines, is in the NALM-6 cell line, a B-cell derived line, extending Horizon's panel of X-Man cell lines to include B-cells.
NALM-6 is a human B-cell precursor leukaemia cell type, established from the peripheral blood of an acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.
The X-Man cell lines will give researchers insight into the role of DNA repair in leukaemia, as well as providing a model for other diseases.
The panel is also said to complement Horizon's existing X-Man DNA repair panel in the HCT-116 colon cell line, providing reagents for the analysis of DNA repair pathways.
Under the terms of the license agreement, Horizon will pay Yokohama City University upfront and ongoing royalty payments in return for worldwide exclusive rights to distribute these lines.
The agreement forms part of Horizon's strategy to generate at least 2,500 new X-Man models of cancer, neurodegenerative and cardiovascular disease to support drug discovery researchers.
