Sekisui Xenotech Add Human And Minipig Fractions To Testing Capability

Sekisui XenoTech is adding human and minipig to the company’s list of species with dermal subcellular fractions available as standard test systems for the development of safer new products. Subcellular fractions are widely used in drug discovery and preclinical drug development to evaluate the in vitro metabolism of new therapeutics.

Many drug-metabolizing enzymes of the liver and other organs are also expressed in the skin, including cytochrome p450 (CYPs), flavin monooxygenases, esterases/amides, UDP-glucuronosyltransferases, glutathione S-transferases and sulfotransferases. Although specific activities of these cutaneous enzymes are lower, they can be significant enough to generate adverse reactions to xenobiotics applied topically to the skin or delivered transdermally, such as creams, gels, sprays or adhesive patches.

“Because of the skin’s unique enzyme activity and expression profile, dermal subcellular fractions can provide more representative test results than commonly used liver, lung, intestine or kidney tissue for compounds that are intended to be delivered to or absorbed through the skin,” explained Chris Bohl, Ph.D., Global Technical Support Manager for Sekisui XenoTech’s products.

Sekisui XenoTech has prepared dermal subcellular fractions as standard products because they were not available ready-to-ship from any industry suppliers. Dr. Bohl commented, “Other suppliers have a lead time of up to 6 months, which could cause costly delays in safety testing of new compounds.” He added, “Our new dermal products feature large lot sizes to ensure long-term product availability as well as market-leading enzyme activity levels and characterization performed using LC-MS/MS methods. This further cements our standing as the leading supplier of relevant in vitro subcellular test systems with a wide assortment of in stock, ready-to-use reagents.”

Sekisui XenoTech’s human dermal S9 fractions as well as CD1 Mouse and IGS Sprague Dawley Rat dermal microsomes or S9 are available through the company’s online store. Gottingen Minipig dermal S9 fractions will be added soon and other custom preparations can be made-on-demand. Sekisui XenoTech can also provide species comparison studies and guidance to identify the most appropriate test systems.

This article has been republished from materials provided by Sekisui Xenotech. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.