Acquisition to enhance cell biology capabilities and accelerate assessments of potential new drug targets

HUNTSVILLE, Ala., April 11, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Discovery Life Sciences^™ (Discovery), the Biospecimen and Biomarker Specialists^™, has acquired Seattle-based ReachBio Research Labs (ReachBio^®), a company specializing in cell-based assays, predictive hematotoxicity, and drug screening services. This acquisition will allow Discovery to scale its consolidated drug discovery and preclinical development offerings to give customers access to a broader range of innovative and specialized cell biology services.

Known as The Cell Biology Experts^™, ReachBio was founded in 2007. The company's expertise encompasses primary cell biology with a particular focus on blood and bone marrow stem cell assays. ReachBio supports its clients' basic research in multiple therapeutic areas. It provides immune response and toxicity assessments of new drug targets in hematologic diseases, cell and gene therapy, immunology, oncology, and immuno-oncology.

Discovery has increased its strategic investments in innovative preclinical development services. The company's acquisition of ReachBio accelerates the continued growth of its cell biology and toxicology services, complementing Discovery's prior acquisitions of IVAL and Corning's Gentest^® business unit. ReachBio's expertise in cell biology assay development and interpretation services are widely used to evaluate the potential toxicity of new drug candidates―enabling customers to make early and informed decisions about the drug candidates' safety and potential efficacy.

The passage of the FDA Modernization Act 2.0 last year lessened the requirement to conduct animal testing, allowing ReachBio's advanced predictive colony forming assays to ultimately accelerate the submission of their clients' FDA Investigational New Drug Applications.

"We are thrilled to welcome ReachBio to the Discovery family," said Discovery CEO Glenn Bilawsky. "ReachBio's expertise in cell-based assays and drug screening favorably positions us to capitalize on the recent regulatory changes and continue to meet the rapidly evolving needs of the pharmaceutical industry."

"Joining forces with Discovery is an exciting opportunity for us," said Emer Clarke, Ph.D., ReachBio's chief scientific officer. "We share Discovery's passion for science and believe that combining our expertise in cell-based assays and drug screening with Discovery's broad multi-omics capabilities will enable us to provide a broader and more strategic range of services to clients in the pharmaceutical industry. Together, we will further accelerate the advancement of drug discovery and development to improve patient outcomes."

About Discovery Life Sciences

Discovery Life Sciences is the company of Biospecimen and Biomarker Specialists, combining one of the world's largest commercial biospecimen inventory and procurement networks with preeminent multi-omic biomarker service laboratories, including genomic, tissue biomarker, proteomic, and flow cytometry services to accelerate new therapies supported by biomarker and companion diagnostic programs for cancer, infectious disease, and other rare and complex conditions.

Through AllCells^®, our cell and gene therapy division, we maintain the largest recallable donor pool to supply Research Use Only (RUO) and clinical-grade fresh and cryopreserved human cellular materials to support cell and gene therapy programs in any phase of development and at any scale.   

Discovery's leading scientific expertise, scale of global operations, and innovative use of current technologies allow customers to obtain results to make critical research and development decisions at market-leading speed. We are Science at your Service^™! For more information, visit dls.com.