20 February 2018 - - Lund, Sweden-based in vitro genetic testing specialist SenzaGen (NASDAQ First North: SENZA) has signed a global licensing agreement with Munich-based contract research organization Eurofins BioPharma Product Testing to market the GARD test to its clients, the company said.
GARD is a group of tests for assessing chemical skin sensitizers. The tests make use of genetic biomarkers for more than 200 genes which cover the entire immune reaction and are relevant to predicting the risk of hypersensitivity.
SenzaGen's tests are also capable of measuring the potency of a substance's allergenic properties. Consequently, GARD tests provide a much more comprehensive basis for determining whether a substance should be classified as an allergen than current testing methods.
Under the terms of the agreement, Eurofins BPT Munich will immediately include GARDskin and the add on test GARDpotency as a diagnostic tool in its chemical safety testing services to clients in the cosmetic, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries worldwide.
GARDskin has the potential to meet the increasing demands in the cosmetics, chemicals and pharmaceutical industries for reliable, animal-free testing methods to assess the allergy-inducing properties of chemical substances. The test is in the process of obtaining regulatory approval and inclusion in international test guidelines.
Eurofins BioPharma Product Testing, a network of harmonized bio/pharmaceutical GMP/GLP product testing laboratories with 30 facilities worldwide, provides comprehensive laboratory services for pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical and medical device companies.
SenzaGen enables the replacement of animal experiments with in vitro genetic testing to determine the allergenicity of the chemicals in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, food products, and dyes.
The company sells the tests in Sweden and the USA, and sells through partners in several other countries. SenzaGen is headquartered in Lund in Sweden and has a subsidiary in San Francisco, California.