Proprietary robotic platform is fully automated cellular gene-transfection and assay system allowing genome-wide screenings for discovery and functional validation of novel targets to be carried out
Xantos Biomedicine, a functional biology and drug discovery company, has signed a service agreement with Compugen for a functional profiling project to determine the activity and putative disease relevant applications of novel splice variants.
Xantos will develop several assays to define the splice variants as agonists or antagonists with selective activity on various receptor subtypes.
A profiling regime will lead to functional validation of splice variants to determine further potential disease areas in which the splice variants could be utilised.
Michael Kazinski, Xantos's chief technology officer, commented on the agreement: "Our XantoScreen technology has evolved into a modular technology for key applications in R and D, with a flexible set of tools and skills allowing the functional profiling of disease relevant proteins.
"The major advantage of this approach is the direct identification of not yet described biological activity of known and unknown proteins".
Stephan Wehselau, CEO at Xantos, added: "The project with Compugen shows that our services based on the functional profiling of our XantoScreen are in high demand and capable of answering customer specific questions.
"The recognition of the value of our technology and expertise by a renowned biotech player like Compugen underlines the potential of our approach".
Noam Shani, vice president biology research and development, Compugen stated: "We are very pleased to be working with the experienced scientists at Xantos.
"Their functional bioassay technology is satisfying an important aspect of our therapeutic protein development programme".
XantoScreen, a proprietary robotic platform, is a fully automated cellular gene-transfection and assay system that allows genome-wide screenings for the discovery and functional validation of novel targets to be carried out rapidly and with accurate read-out.
XantoScreen can be customised to a range of high content cellular screening assays and enables individual cDNAs, RNAi molecules or proteins to be studied in combination with or without inhibitory molecules, to identify and validate targets, ligands, receptors, compounds or pathways.
