XenoTech Adds Fatty Liver Disease Tissue Arrays, Microsome Pool to Research Biobank
Featuring Normal, Steatosis & Steatohepatitis Tissue from Alcoholic or Non-Alcoholic Donors for Scientific Investigation
Kansas City, KS (April 3, 2018) – XenoTech now offers human liver tissue microarrays and a microsomal pool for studying and developing new treatments for fatty liver disease (FLD). The microsomes and arrays feature non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and other liver tissue from the company’s Research Biobank. The initiative is part of XenoTech’s ongoing commitment to furthering knowledge of hepatic disease.
“Fatty liver disease is a highly pervasive condition that has a very significant impact on the health of modern society. We are supporting hepatology researchers with these collections of high-quality human tissues to advance basic knowledge of FLD and to develop new treatments for the illness,” explained Maciej Czerwinski, Ph.D., XenoTech Director of Consulting. Dr. Czerwinski led the effort to establish the company’s Research Biobank and developed the microarrays.
Tissue microarrays are tools for the analysis of disease biomarkers in well-defined patient populations. XenoTech offers tissue arrays focused on NASH, steatohepatitis with a history of alcohol use, and steatosis both without and with history of alcohol use. The placement of targeted disease tissues and appropriate controls from numerous donors in the same arrays facilitates comparative analysis, e.g. in biomarker research. Relevant donor data, including body mass index (BMI) and macrovesicular fat content, accompany the arrays. The arrays were manufactured by Reveal Biosciences, a computational pathology company offering histopathology, in situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry and quantitative image analysis.
Similarly, the new pool of microsomes was prepared from several donors diagnosed with NASH. Human liver microsomes are commonly used to support in vitro ADME (Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism and Excretion) studies because of the representative composition of hepatic drug metabolizing enzymes. The newly developed NASH pool is most suitable for the analysis of human drug metabolism in well-characterized disease samples.
“Research Biobank tissue is collected and preserved with the initial intent for human transplantation, making it perfect for investigations of NASH, drug metabolizing enzymes, transporters, biomarkers, molecules, etc., and their role in pathogenesis,” commented Dr. Czerwinski. The specimens are available in quantities larger than those obtained during needle biopsies, and are collected in a timely manner as opposed to a typical post-mortem after several hours of warm ischemia. The arrays are cut in small batches and stored at 4° under nitrogen. XenoTech has accumulated the specimens from over 20 years of providing in vitro drug-drug interaction studies as part of its contract research services.
In addition to microarrays, some of the company’s Research Biobank liver tissue samples are individually available in buffer (pre-lysate), paraffin blocks and slides or as hepatocyte and subcellular fraction isolations. The company also processes tissues from many other organs. To learn more, place an order or view XenoTech’s FLD research resources, which include a webinar on drug metabolizing enzymes and transporters in NASH as well as material on FLD progression characteristics, visit www.xenotech.com.
Other Recent Announcements from XenoTech
XenoTech Hiring and Growing to Meet Customer Demand / Appoints New COO
New Enhanced AO & XO Activity Test Systems Available, Major CYP Activity Not Significantly Impacted
Choosing a Relevant Small Animal Model for Pharmacokinetic or Toxicity Studies
Insects and Cattle and Sheep, Oh My!
What to Do with Microsome Stable, Low-Turnover Compounds
Initial Impressions of the new Draft FDA DDI Guidance Documents from XenoTech
About XenoTech
XenoTech, LLC is a global Contract Research Organization utilized by 98% of top pharma companies and numerous other organizations. For almost 25 years, the company has offered proven drug development expertise, providing an ever-evolving selection of cell and tissue-based products, screening, radiolabeling, API manufacturing, in vitro ADME Tox and pharmacology, in vivo ADME Tox and QWBA, metabolite ID and production, bioanalytical services and consulting. XenoTech’s product selection includes a wide range of high-quality unique and standard reagents, including subcellular fractions, hepatocytes, media, tissue samples, cell lines, recombinant enzymes, substrates & metabolites and more. The company also regularly prepares and delivers custom-designed products and services in response to client requests. For additional information, please refer to the company’s website at www.xenotech.com.