Medicines Discovery Catapult and Crown Bioscience Form Strategic Global Alliance for Radiopharmaceutical Innovation

The global collaboration provides an integrated translational biology platform to accelerate the development of novel radiopharmaceuticals

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Medicines Discovery Catapult (MDC) and Crown Bioscience have formed a strategic global collaboration to deliver an integrated translational biology platform for innovators developing radiopharmaceuticals.

Radiopharmaceuticals are a growing class of medicines that contain radioactive forms of chemical elements (called radioisotopes) that effectively diagnose and treat cancers. They provide a rapidly advancing approach to the future of medical research and treatments, with the potential to drive game-changing breakthroughs for patients.

When used in oncology, radiopharmaceuticals deliver therapeutic radiation directly to tumors, meaning that they are more targeted, more effective, and result in fewer side effects. Radiopharmaceuticals can also be used as radioactive tracers in medical imaging, enhancing accuracy and providing detailed insights to help improve diagnosis.

The strategic global collaboration between MDC and Crown Bioscience supports companies across the radiopharmaceutical pipeline, whether they are advancing radiotherapeutics, exploring new isotopes, or optimizing targeting agents.

It recognizes and leverages the complementarity between MDC and Crown Bioscience’s expertise and technology platforms, and creates value for global life sciences companies, by providing access to an integrated, clinically relevant platform for evaluating their radiopharmaceutical therapies. MDC brings expertise and cutting-edge technology to the partnership in the fields of cell biology, high-resolution microscopy, radiochemistry, preclinical imaging, mass spectrometry and multi-omic tissue analysis enabling a comprehensive analysis of radiopharmaceutical assets.

The collaboration enables rapid and reliable testing of how radiopharmaceuticals work, how the body responds to them, and how effective they are – all critical factors in identifying viable drug candidates early and reducing clinical development risk.

Applying their combined expertise, MDC and Crown Bioscience will deliver preclinical comparator studies with approved standards of care, providing increased regulatory confidence and supporting drug developers to prepare successful Investigational New Drug submissions.

Together, MDC and Crown Bioscience provide a fully integrated preclinical workflow for companies developing radiotherapeutics. By delivering more efficient studies, generating high-quality translational data, and supporting precision medicine strategies, the collaboration will accelerate radiopharmaceutical drug development and improve patient outcomes.

Commenting on today’s announcement, Dr Francesca Sadler, Chief Commercial Officer at Medicines Discovery Catapult, said:

“MDC operates an advanced preclinical drug discovery facility, including world-class radiochemistry capabilities and a translational suite of imaging technologies, to support the growing demand for novel radiopharmaceuticals.

“Our partnership with Crown Bioscience means MDC can expand its current end-to-end translational biology offering even further. Combining the expertise of our two organizations provides a comprehensive platform for drug innovators developing radiopharmaceuticals, helping to accelerate the progress of these novel medicines that have the potential to transform patient outcomes.”

John Gu, Chief Executive Officer at Crown Bioscience, said:

“Advanced radiopharmaceuticals are poised to redefine how we treat cancer, but their successful development requires translational platforms that are both scientifically rigorous and clinically relevant. By combining MDC’s radiochemistry and imaging capabilities with Crown Bioscience’s preclinical oncology expertise, we are creating a truly integrated solution for innovators in this field. This collaboration reflects our shared commitment to accelerating the delivery of next generation targeted therapies to patients worldwide.”

MDC is a national Life Sciences service dedicated to turning drug discovery into impactful and commercial breakthroughs. With unrivaled radiochemistry expertise and a suite of imaging technologies, including total-body PET, MDC is pioneering the development, evaluation and translation of radiopharmaceuticals.

Crown Bioscience is a global contract research organization that provides discovery, preclinical, and translational platforms and services to advance oncology and immuno-oncology. Its industry-leading expertise in translational preclinical models enables efficacy testing and provides robust evaluation of anti-tumor activity.

Notes to editors

A high-resolution graphic showing the pre-clinical drug discovery pipeline for radiopharmaceuticals is attached. Adapted from Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(5), 1378

About Medicines Discovery Catapult

Medicines Discovery Catapult (MDC) is a national Life Sciences service dedicated to turning drug discovery into commercial breakthroughs.

At the frontier of drug discovery, MDC works with entrepreneurial scientists to make every move count. It validates their ideas, de-risks investments, and feeds insights back into the sector to drive productivity and impact.​

MDC creates momentum through its unique blend of discovery expertise, technology, insights, and sector-leading partnerships. Where there is unmet patient need, MDC stimulates innovation through its National Programmes. ​

MDC has worked with over 300 organizations, who have gone on to raise more than £1.34bn of R&D investment.​

Its approach to drug discovery drives game-changing breakthroughs and improves patients’ lives.​

More information:

• Part of the Innovate UK Catapult Network
• Based in Alderley Park, Cheshire, UK
• For more information, visit https://md.catapult.org.uk/

About Crown Bioscience

Crown Bioscience, a JSR Life Sciences company, is a global contract research organization (CRO) dedicated to accelerating drug discovery and development in oncology and immuno-oncology. We partner with biotech and pharmaceutical companies to provide innovative, tailored solutions spanning preclinical research, translational platforms, and clinical trial support. With the world’s largest commercially available patient-derived xenograft (PDX) collection and approximately 1,000 tumor organoid models powered by Hubrecht Organoid Technology, we offer unparalleled insights across 35 cancer indications. Our expertise spans in vivo, in vitro, ex vivo, and in silico methods, complemented by advanced laboratory services that span the entire drug development continuum. Additionally, our extensive biobank of liquid and human biospecimens, complete with clinical histories, enhances oncology research capabilities. Operating from 11 state-of-the-art facilities across the US, Europe, and APAC, our laboratories meet the highest industry standards, including accreditation by the College of American Pathologists (CAP) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). To learn more, visit www.crownbio.com.