MECHELEN, Belgium, Jan. 23, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- Galapagos Genomics NV, the Belgian functional genomics company, today announced a research collaboration with Exelixis, Inc., for the use of Galapagos' proprietary adenoviral technology to analyze the function of novel genes in cell-based assays.
Under the terms of the agreement, Galapagos will construct recombinant adenoviruses harboring genes selected by Exelixis. This PhenoSelect(TM) expression technology generates viral vectors that are replication deficient and can infect a wide range of human cells. Exelixis will use the collection of adenoviruses to introduce the genes in various cell types to evaluate the function of the proteins encoded by the genes within targeted, disease-relevant biological pathways. Financial terms of the collaboration are not disclosed.
"This collaboration further demonstrates the growing interest of the pharma and biotech industry in our proprietary target validation technology for functional genomics applications," said Onno van de Stolpe, Chief Executive Officer of Galapagos. "We are very pleased to collaborate with a top tier genomics-based drug discovery company like Exelixis and contribute to their selection of viable drug targets for further product development."
The use of the Galapagos adenoviral technology has been demonstrated to be particularly useful in the functional characterization of genes. Although there are other approaches to identify genes or gene products that are associated with a particular disease, they do not establish a causal relationship between gene and function. Recombinant adenoviral technology is a cost-effective method that directly associates human genes with phenotypic changes such as morphology, motility, proliferation, differentiation, signal transduction, enzyme and transport activity.
Galapagos Genomics is a privately held company headquartered in Mechelen, Belgium. The Company was established in 1999 as a joint venture between Crucell NV (Nasdaq:CRXL)in Leiden, The Netherlands, and Tibotec-Virco NV (Mechelen,Belgium). The Company has built a functional genomics platform using arrayed adenoviruses containing human genes to identify drug targets and therapeutic genes. Galapagos technology is based on Crucell's proprietary PER.C6(TM) human cell line expression platform. Galapagos has an exclusive license to use PER.C6 for functional genomics applications. It's PhenoSelect libraries are in a format that enable high-throughput screening using cellular assays. The Company currently employs 78 people, including 21 Ph.D's, and occupies a 15,000 square ft. research and production facility in Mechelen, with additional research laboratories in Leiden, The Netherlands.
Galapagos' current partners include Pharmacia, Bayer, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Incyte Genomics, Procter&Gamble Pharmaceuticals, UCB Pharma, Organon (Akzo Nobel) and Euroscreen.