Crown Bioscience, a JSR Life Sciences company and contract research organization (CRO) in preclinical and translational drug development services, has completed the expansion and renovation of its Crown Bioscience United Kingdom facility.
 
The additional laboratory and office space will increase capacity and expand the company’s current in vivo offering by 30 percent and provide dedicated space for a newly acquired high frequency ultrasound unit – a specialized high-resolution imaging device designed to increase the utility of two- and three-dimensional imaging without the need for cell line-tagging, coupled with high precision guided inoculation/dosing of orthotopic and metastatic models.
 
“This expansion is a critical step in our ability to provide additional imaging modalities to better visualize and understand tumor progression and response to potential therapies,” said Yinfei Yin, PhD, general manager at Crown Bioscience UK. “This additional imaging platform allows us to perform cutting-edge preclinical studies, offering our customers advanced insights on potential drug candidates before they enter clinical trials.”
 
The company’s UK site leverages more than 15 years of experience in in vivo optical imaging, including bioluminescence, fluorescence and microCT modalities. Specifically, the addition of high frequency ultrasound will enable better longitudinal evaluation of tumor growth and earlier, more detailed analytics on the tumor microenvironment.
 
“This site expansion is driven by increased customer demand for access to Crown Bioscience’s in vivo services from the UK and mainland Europe, and allows us to build upon our innovative foundation to develop additional industry-leading technologies,” said Armin Spura, PhD, chief executive officer of Crown Bioscience. “Following our recent acquisition of OcellO B.V. and launch of our 3D Ex Vivo Patient Tissue Platform, this milestone enables Crown Bioscience to continue to use the power of partnership to unlock breakthroughs in drug discovery and, ultimately, to provide patients with better treatment options.”
 
Crown Bioscience UK serves customers advancing preclinical and clinical oncology and immuno-oncology studies. The site offers a comprehensive suite of in vivo models, including PDX, CDX and syngeneic portfolios incorporating orthotopic, metastatic, and systemic variations, as well as in vitro and ex vivo services, such as cell viability, invasion/migration assays, immunoassays, 3D-TGA and combination studies/analysis.