(Shrewsbury and Boston, MA) -- In a significant breakthrough in assisting early-stage drug development, especially for Central Nervous System (CNS) diseases and conditions such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease, Schizophrenia and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Ekam Imaging Inc. is pleased to announce a new service offering positioned to transform the way in which new therapies are discovered and developed. Ekam is the only Contract Research Organization (CRO) now capable of performing translatable, multi-modal imaging studies (fMRI and molecular) using awake, unanesthetized animals. This unique and proprietary capability provides the critical tools for evaluating, in real time, the progression of disease and the efficacy and safety of novel therapeutics designed to treat many of the unmet medical needs affecting so many patients throughout the world.
Ekam has entered into a licensing and services contract with Northeastern University and its Center for Translational Neuroimaging (CTNI), under the direction of Dr. Craig Ferris, a pioneer of awake animal imaging and co-founder of Ekam. Under the terms of the agreement, Ekam technology is being used by CTNI to deliver imaging services to both its commercial and academic collaborators. Reciprocally, Ekam adds to its technology portfolio future imaging and radiochemistry capabilities that are developed at Northeastern.
Since opening operations in May 2009, Ekam has conducted a variety of awake animal imaging studies for its Sponsors, including some of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies. The positive feedback resulting from these studies has resulted in additional programs within existing Sponsors and increased awareness and interest across the industry.
“Imaging is rapidly growing in importance as a preclinical tool capable of providing more clinically relevant and translatable information critical to the more productive development of novel drugs, especially those affecting the brain,” said Mark Nedelman, President of Ekam. “Until now, preclinical imaging use has been limited by the ambiguities surrounding the use of anaesthetized animals. Once you remove that limitation, its use at various points along the drug development process will grow, substantially reducing the cost of development by eliminating more expensive or less efficient alternative methods. Further, certain applications of imaging in preclinical development will only now become available with the capability to study conscious animals. The ability to deliver accurate, translational data will greatly assist our Sponsors in faster and more informed decision making.”
“Animal imaging is crucial in early drug discovery, however the use of anesthesia creates an artificial situation that masks true drug activity and pharmacokinetics,” said Craig Ferris, PhD, director of CTNI and Professor of Psychology and Pharmaceutical Sciences at Northeastern University. “In addition, animal behavior, the traditional means of evaluating drug efficacy, does not reliably translate to the human condition , ultimately costing drug companies hundreds of millions dollars when they discover the drug doesn’t work in clinical trials. The testing we are now able to perform in partnership with Ekam examines the patterns of brain activity and integrated neural circuits in rodents and nonhuman primates that are activated with drugs and compares these to human imaging data on brain activity.”
“These sorts of collaborations between industry and academia are what keep the innovation pipeline in Massachusetts strong,” said Dr. Susan Windham-Bannister, President and CEO of The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center. This collaboration will advance scientific knowledge, and create jobs as Ekam Imaging continues to grow.” The Center has invested $3.7 million to fund collaborative research arrangements between life sciences companies and academic institutions. Ekam Imaging, Inc. was founded by a team of renowned scientists including Dr. Ferris and co-researcher Graham Jones, PhD, Professor and Chair of the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Northeastern. Ekam’s proprietary technology includes eight patents focused on the imaging of awake animals and the labeling of drugs using microwave mediated organic synthesis technology. This allows compounds to be more accurately and efficiently studied once administered in vivo providing important information on how the body handles new drugs. Additional Ekam intellectual property includes advanced data analysis techniques, three-dimensional brain atlases used for data visualization, and imaging models of various disease conditions. Ekam’s current and potential clients include pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device companies looking to leverage the potential offered by multi-modal imaging in awake animals across many different therapeutic fields. This capability is especially important in the development of drugs aimed at treating many chronic and debilitating diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease, Schizophrenia and pain.
About Ekam Imaging Inc.
Ekam Imaging Inc. is a pre-clinical contract research organization that provides imaging services, data analysis, and information synthesis to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies worldwide. Ekam’s primary focus is on central nervous system diseases and auto-immune disorders, where the imaging of awake, un-anesthetized animals is critical to successful drug discovery and development. For more information, please visit www.ekamimaging.com.
About Northeastern University Founded in 1898, Northeastern University is a private research university located in the heart of Boston. Northeastern is a leader in interdisciplinary research, urban engagement, and the integration of classroom learning with real-world experience. The university’s distinctive cooperative education program, where students alternate semesters of full-time study with semesters of paid work in fields relevant to their professional interests and major, is one of the largest and most innovative in the world. The University offers a comprehensive range of undergraduate and graduate programs leading to degrees through the doctorate in six undergraduate colleges, eight graduate schools, and two part-time divisions. For more information, please visit www.northeastern.edu.
About the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center
The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC) is a quasi-public agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts tasked with implementing the Massachusetts Life Sciences Act, a ten-year, $1 billion initiative that was signed into law in June of 2008. The Center’s mission is to create jobs in the life sciences and support vital scientific research that will improve the human condition. This work includes making financial investments in public and private institutions that are advancing life sciences research, development and commercialization and building ties between sectors of the Massachusetts life sciences community. For more information, visit www.masslifesciences.com.
