Months removed from getting bought by Huntingdon Life Sciences, Harlan Laboratories has teamed up with a French CRO to expand its capabilities in drug discovery and translational medicine.
Under the deal, Harlan's contract research services business will collaborate with Fluofarma on early-stage research and toxicology, offering target screening, biomarker quantification and histology services. Fluofarma specializes in developing cell- and tissue-based assays for drug discovery, expertise that dovetails with Harlan's offerings in preclinical development, said Ciriaco Maraschiello, director of drug discovery and translational medicine at Harlan CRS.
"One of our goals is to help our customers reduce the risk of drug attrition during the development process," Maraschiello said in a statement. "This alliance with Fluofarma enables us to strengthen our services during the early stages of development so that we can be a key partner for our customers."
Huntingdon paid an undisclosed sum for Harlan in May, dividing its acquisition in two by separating animal models and services from the contract research business.
The U.K.-based Huntingdon long made its money conducting animal studies for the pharma, crop protection and chemical industries, and the Harlan buyout was an effort to expand its reach into biotech and med tech, the company said.
Since the deal, Huntingdon touts itself as the No. 1 provider of contract services in crop protection and chemicals, the No. 2 source for research models and the third-place provider of non-clinical CRO work to the pharma industry.
- read the statement