BioIVT, a provider of research models and services for drug development, has acquired Santa Clara, CA-based Optivia Biotechnology and its portfolio of transporter assays, multi-transporter models, transporter systems biology, and molecular transport research solutions. Financial details were not disclosed.
 
Transport proteins govern drug concentration in the blood and vital organs and effects are evaluated early in the lead candidate selection and optimization process in drug R&D programs. Regulatory authorities request that in vitro studies be conducted on nine specific transporters for drug-drug interaction (DDI) assessment and drug labeling.
 
BioIVT’s portfolio now includes all of Optivia’s products, including its Opti-Expression technology, Opti-Target, Opti-DDI, and Opti-ADME Transporter Services Panels, and its TransFlex Single Transporter and Multi-Transporter Assay Plates.
 
“BioIVT is partnering with biopharmaceutical customers not just on single projects but on their entire R&D pipeline. We continue to build and enhance our product and research service capabilities to become the partner of choice for our clients and the industry experts in specialty application areas,” said BioIVT chief executive officer Jeffrey Gatz. “We are delighted that Optivia is joining BioIVT as we position to become the world leader in transporter sciences. Optivia will be an important addition to BioIVT’s leading ADME-Toxicology model systems franchise, complementing the capabilities of our recent acquisitions of Qualyst Transporter Solutions and Ascendance Biotechnology.”
 
“We share BioIVT’s passion, energy and vision for becoming pharma’s optimal specialty outsourced drug discovery and development partner,” said Optivia Founder, president and chief executive officer Yong Huang, Ph.D. “We look forward to joining BioIVT and being able to offer our customers a broader range of products and services but with the same high quality, attention to detail, and excellent customer service that they have learned to expect from Optivia.”