University spin out develops ‘revolutionary’ technology
1 Feb 2016 by Evoluted New Media
SimOmics, a University of York spin-out has received financial backing on a computer simulation that can predict the effect of drugs tested on animals and humans.
SimOmics, a University of York spin-out has received financial backing on a computer simulation that can predict the effect of drugs tested on animals and humans.
The ‘Virtual Fish EcoToxicology Laboratory’ will mathematically model the exposure, uptake, metabolism and effects of drugs in development on fish before the drug have finished clinical trials. Other partners in this project include AstraZeneca and the University of York.
Professor Jon Timmis, CEO of SimOmics, said: “Our technology will dramatically de-risk the testing of drugs and their interactions with fish. We also see future applications for testing the environmental impact of everything from new pesticides to printing ink.”
SimOmics were awarded a £300,000 grant from Innovate UK to develop the virtual fish lab. This is similar to their Evidence Bioscience platform which accurately predicts the end-to-end journey drugs take, through a patient’s body, into wastewater and river systems. It can even predict the drug’s effect on fish reproduction and growth.
It is claimed the chemical industry spends millions of pounds every year conducting toxicology experiments on fish. The program by SimOmics could reduce that by a third and reduce the time needed for toxicology tests – anywhere from one day to a one year – into a matter of minutes.
Professor Timmis said: “Ultimately, we could also model the effect of future drugs on humans to ensure that new treatments are already refined and developed to a much higher standard - before the first clinical trials ever take place.”
SimOmics is also part of a consortium awarded almost £1m from the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) to develop a virtual laboratory to find new treatments for leishmaniasis, a disease transmitted by sandflies that kills 30,000 people every year. The other members are Cybula Ltd, Pharmadex Ltd, SimOmics, University of Glasgow, the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, University of York.
