Preclinical services news in brief

Gene Bridges has signed a collaboration agreement with BASF. This will see the use of Gene Bridges' Red/ET recombination technology alongside BASF's expertise in biotechnology, process development and product application. The agreement is a significant expansion of previous service projects carried out by Gene Bridges for BASF. "We are delighted to have reached this agreement with such a major player in the industrial biotechnology sector as BASF,"​ Dr Harald Kranz, who is jointly responsible for this project, said. Meanwhile, Panacos Pharmaceuticals has extended its collaboration with Evotec into its fourth year. The programme, identifying novel compounds for treating viral infections, has expanded to now include Evotec's development chemistry services. Panacos president and chief operating officer Dr Graham Allaway said: "Based on [Evotec's] excellent track record in moving compounds through discovery and into development, we decided to broaden the scope of our work with them. We are looking forward to continuing our productive relationship." ​ In other news, international research outsourcing company GenScript has been added to VWR Biosciences's list of molecular biology partners in both proteomics and genomics. GenScript representatives believe this collaborative effort with VWB, which recommends contract research companies, will make GenScript services more accessible to scientists worldwide, with principal customers including major pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology companies, universities, clinical research entities and government institutions. GenScript, based in Piscataway, New Jersey, provides high-quality gene synthesis, custom peptides, custom proteins, custom antibodies, lab supplies, kits and reagents.