Carcinotech and CELLINK are creating living tumors on which new drugs and therapies will be tested

Healthcare companies Carcinotech and CELLINK have announced a collaboration, combining CELLINK’s bioprinting solutions and Carcinotech’s expertise in cancer drug development. CELLINK intends to produce live tumors on its bioprinters and create the so-called protocols that enable researchers and doctors to replicate them in laboratory conditions in order to develop new therapeutic therapies.

As part of the partnership between both companies, biofabrication protocols for bioprinted cancer models based on cancer cell lines will be developed and commercialized. This is expected to improve the accuracy and speed of drug development processes, lowering development costs and enabling improved efficiency. The protocols will be available for use in the BIO CELLX system offered by CELLINK.

In 2020 alone, an estimated 19.3 million cases of cancer occurred worldwide, with a mortality rate of almost 10.0 million. The most deadly cancers are breast (11.7%), lung (11.4%), colon (10%) and prostate (7.3%). And although cancer continues to affect millions of people, the number of effective treatments is limited and those available vary greatly from patient to patient.

Carcinotech has established itself as a leader in the production of 3D bioprinted micro-tumors, as well as 3D models based on cancer cell lines, using CELLINK technology for automated workflows. By collaborating with patient biopsies, immune cells and cancer stem cells to develop bioprinted micro-tumours, Carcinotech provides a key service to the pharmaceutical sector by helping scientists optimize their drug testing workflows.

The protocols available in BIO CELLX will use 3D models based on cell lines and will significantly accelerate research. 3D cancer cell line models were developed to include a physiologically representative ratio of 5 key cell types relevant to each cancer with commonly available cell lines.

Each protocol will enable 3D bioprinting of tumor models that have passed rigorous quality control measures to ensure their reliability. As part of the partnership agreement between CELLINK and Carcinotech, the protocols will be made available in CELLINK’s BIO CELLX 3D biodispenser. BIO CELLX is a leading biodosing system that provides customers with the ability to automate cell culture processes. By offering these protocols, CELLINK and Carcinotech will enable drug discovery researchers to rapidly increase the speed and accuracy of results.

CELLINK and Carcinotech entered into their first collaboration in 2020 to advance 3D bioprinting technology for cancer research. This initial collaboration leveraged Carcinotech’s extensive expertise in patient-derived tumor replications and CELLINK’s innovative bioinks, extracellular matrix (ECM) and laminin-based bioinks, which enable human cells to grow and develop in the same way as they do in the human body.

Source: www.cellink.com