Nuformix, the pharmaceutical development company using cocrystal technology to unlock the therapeutic potential of approved small molecule drugs, said on Thursday it has signed a deal with Quotient Clinical, a provider of specialist drug development services, to study NXP001.
Quotient will use its Translational Pharmaceutics platform to evaluate bioequivalence for the NXP001 cocrystal product in healthy subjects, Nuformix said in its stock exchange filling.
The company explained that pharmaceutical cocrystals are re-engineered crystalline forms of small molecule drugs, in which a drug and excipient are crystallised together. Resulting cocrystals can offer a number of performance improvements, such as solubility and dissolution of otherwise poorly soluble drugs.
Quotient’s Translational Pharmaceutics platform integrates formulation development and real-time adaptive GMP manufacturing with clinical research. In comparison to traditional outsourcing approaches, Quotient’s Translational Pharmaceutics platform dramatically accelerates drug product development timelines and significantly reduces development costs. Nuformix hopes to realise these benefits in its NXP001 programme, consistent with its strategy of accessing World-leading external expertise to advance key programmes.
Dr Dan Gooding, CEO, Nuformix plc, said: “The appointment of Quotient was not a difficult decision as its Translational Pharmaceutics platform is perfectly suited to our needs in this final stage of our NXP001 programme – we were very impressed with Quotient’s overall approach versus alternative options. Demonstrating NXP001’s bioequivalence to the currently marketed product opens up immediate global out-licensing opportunities for Nuformix, so we’re very excited to commence the study and also evaluate the platform’s potential for future Nuformix clinical programmes,”
John McDermott, Executive Director, Drug Product Optimisation, Quotient Clinical, said: “We are pleased to announce this new client agreement with Nuformix, whose cocrystal approach further broadens our experience in addressing bioavailability challenges for poorly soluble drugs. This program of work is an excellent illustration of how we can assist our emerging biopharma customers to rapidly validate novel drug delivery technologies and new product concepts.”
Image: Nuformix