GreenScreen HC:
Launched in March 2007, Gentronix’s new human cell-based genotoxicity screening assay, GreenScreen HC, is being used by a rapidly expanding number of laboratories in both small and large pharmaceutical, veterinary and household chemical companies, including J&J and GSK. GreenScreen is being successfully employed at different stages of the drug development process from hit to lead screening to lead candidate selection.
Following a study of 2698 proprietary compounds from the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) compound library, Jacky Van Gompel, Head of Genetic and in vitro Toxicology, Global Preclinical Development Europe, pointed out that the results of this study underline how GreenScreen can “help prevent important genotoxic drug candidates from persisting in development using valuable resources that could be used to develop compounds more likely to be successful drug candidates.”
BioReliance, a USA based CRO is offering GreenScreen HC as part of a suite of genotoxicity screening assays and comments “The addition of GreenScreen HC provides our clients the opportunity to test for genetic toxicology earlier in the development process and with much less test article required for each assay. The highly predictive nature of this assay makes it ideal for screening during lead optimisation”.
Of the arrangement for outsourced testing services with Gentronix for a new pain relief drug NLS-105, NeuroDiscovery Chairman, Dr Mark Treherne said “We are delighted to collaborate with Gentronix and this agreement will provide us with a significant opportunity to accelerate the development of NSL-105 to build an in-depth pipeline of innovative products for the treatment of a variety of painful medical conditions.”
GreenScreen EM (Environmental Monitoring):
GreenScreen EM has been used in a range of projects and including:
- Investigations of contaminated river and canal waters in the UK, Europe and US.
- Evaluation of industrial effluents from UK chemical manufacturing plants - members of the Specialised Organic Chemicals Sector Association (SOCSA).
- Industrial effluents from the UK and France subject to different types of oxidative treatment.
- Testing contaminated soil extracts in a field trial in Asia.
- Investigations into the genotoxicity of estuarine waters downstream of heavy industry.
- Characterisation of the toxicity of sediments.
- Assessing the toxicity of industrial chemicals.
Users include industrial sites, local authority and government environmental regulators and academic institutions.
A UK Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) sponsored project conducted at Astra Zeneca’s Brixham Environmental Laboratory recently evaluated new assays for assessing ecotoxicity in industrial effluents. The evaluators concluded that: “The Gentronix GreenScreen assay proved to have a high degree of correlation with the benchmark (Daphnia and Algae, screening assays) thus providing a useful preview of results expected from these screens. Furthermore, the assay is easy to perform for personnel with only basic laboratory skills, making this form of testing accessible to the environmental marketplace and to effluent producers.”[1]
The North Carolina Division of Water Quality has recently completed an evaluation of GreenScreen EM for use in screening river waters downstream of industrial sites and populated catchment areas. Sandy Mort, Environmental Biologist in the Aquatic Toxicology Unit commented that “GreenScreen can be a valuable addition to a panel of ecotoxicity tests, which form a powerful tool for ecosystem investigation. The GreenScreen assay produces complimentary and relevant toxicity data”.
The European Union SWIFT-WFD (Screening methods for water data information in support of the implementation of the Water Framework Directive) Framework Six project investigated the distribution of genotoxicity in a dock on the River Ribble, UK using the GreenScreen EM assay. The final report of the consortium reported “The findings indicated the strength of this approach since it indicated the distribution of genotoxic pollutants, even though the identity of the causative agents was unknown. The impact of genotoxic contaminants could be measured, even for new or emerging substances of concern.”
[1] J. Environ. Monit, 2004, 6, 855-865.
Back to top