New integrated testing strategy for the evaluation of environmental contaminants.

Calgary, AB and San Diego, CA … The Alberta Centre for Toxicology (ACFT), University of Calgary, Faculty of Medicine, Calgary, Alberta, Canada and ACEA Biosciences Inc., San Diego, CA, USA have entered into an agreement for the joint development of an in vitro cytotoxicity based human health risk assessment system using ACEA Bioscience’s real-time cell-electronic array technology. This major collaborative effort is to create cell-based toxicity profiles of commonly found priority contaminants in the environment. “Ultimately, the goal is to integrate in vitro toxicity data and other information to develop a state-of-the-art environmental health risk assessment system” said Dr. David Kinniburgh, Director, ACFT.

The Roche-ACEA xCELLigence System is a cell substrate impedance measurement based instrumentation and software that integrates micro electronics and cell biology. Among many other biomedical research applications, it is ideally suited for toxicology uses because it can dynamically monitor cell growth/death in cultures exposed to environmental chemicals. The pattern of cell growth/death can provide important mechanistic information about the contaminants. Other such parameters as the inhibitory concentration can also be measured, and together with existing information about the chemicals, it can be used to develop an integrated health risk assessment model.

“We are extremely pleased about our collaboration with the ACFT and that our real-time, label-free microelectronic technology is finding ever broadening applications in the field of environmental toxicology and environmental protection” said Dr. James O’Connell, CEO, ACEA Biosciences Inc. Toxicity testing is rapidly changing in the 21st century primarily due to the global quest to replace animal experimentation with alternative methods such as the in vitro assays based on the Roche-ACEA xCELLigence System. “We have developed new tools and technologies for toxicity testing, chemical characterization, and risk assessment that will modernize the future of toxicology” said Dr. O’Connell.

Alberta researchers are leaders in the field of environmental health including environmental toxicology, personal exposure assessment, biomonitoring and now cytotoxicity profiling. A collaborative project team has been assembled to implement this multiyear initiative based on ACEA’s leading edge technology. The financial details of the agreement have not been disclosed.

For more information on the technology, please visit www.xCELLigence.roche.com.

Media inquiries in Canada may be directed to: Dr. David Kinniburgh, Director             Alberta Centre for Toxicology 403-220-5762

Media inquiries in USA may be directed to: Dr. James O’Connell, CEO ACEA Biosciences Inc.