zPREDICTA to join forces with Science Exchange

Science Exchange, a leading marketplace for outsourced R&D, has announced it is working with zPREDICTA to offer online access to its predictive cancer drug development and testing services.

zPREDICTA is a California-based biotechnology company with expertise in creating human, disease-specific tissue microenvironments for testing drug efficacy and safety. Unlike other platforms, zPREDICTA’s patented 3D models utilize proprietary organ-specific extracellular matrix formulations that match the in vivo milieu of the organ of interest.

These models reconstruct both cellular and extracellular compartments of each tissue, which is especially essential for the testing of immuno-oncology agents. The results have been promising. In one ongoing study comparing clinical outcomes with drug potency in zPREDICTA’s 3D culture, patients’ responses in 18 out of 20 cases were predicted correctly.

“Joining forces with Science Exchange gives us the opportunity to help advance more drug development programs through our newly patented, predictive 3D tissue reconstruction technology,” said zPREDICTA’s CEO, Julia Kirshner, Ph.D. “Researchers around the world can now work with us to tackle new challenges in modeling complex disease states, tissues, and tumors.”

“We are excited to team up with zPREDICTA to make its drug development services rapidly available to our pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical clients,” said Elizabeth Iorns, Ph.D., co-founder and CEO of Science Exchange. “Science Exchange is committed to supporting the most innovative and qualified providers on our marketplace. zPREDICTA met our rigorous standards for quality and compliance while significantly advancing the field of disease modeling through their own research.”

About zPREDICTA

zPREDICTA, founded in 2014 by two Ph.D. scientists, Julia Kirshner and Mukti Parikh on the principle that cures for human diseases require laboratory systems based on human biology.

zPREDICTA, backed by Y Combinator, the premier Bay Area accelerator, is a pioneer in organ-specific and disease-specific 3D cell culture platforms for cancer drug testing. zPREDICTA technology demonstrates high clinical relevance, enabling its pharma clients to manage pipeline attrition more efficiently by identifying drugs that are effective in patients, from the hundreds, and often thousands, of compounds in development.

The mission of zPREDICTA is to eliminate the guesswork from drug development, thus reducing the time and cost of bringing life-saving therapies to market.

About Science Exchange

Science Exchange provides R&D organizations with a rapid path to discovery, development and commercialization.

Science Exchange includes an efficient source-to-secure platform for ordering 6,000+ services from a network of more than 2,500 qualified outsourced research providers, all with pre-established contracts in place that protect client intellectual property and confidentiality.

The platform increases access to innovation and improves productivity, freeing scientists from administrative tasks and delays associated with sourcing, establishing and managing service provider contracts. Additionally, the Science Exchange enterprise program enables large R&D organizations to consolidate research outsourcing spend into a single strategic relationship, driving efficiency, improving transparency and oversight, and delivering cost savings.

Since being founded in 2011, Science Exchange has raised more than $58 million from Norwest Venture Partners, Maverick Capital Ventures, Union Square Ventures, Collaborative Fund, Index Ventures, OATV, the YC Continuity Fund, and others.

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