PPD, PPGx and ADoctorInYourHouse.com Collaborate to Provide an Online Pharmacogenomic Education and Information Resource
WILMINGTON, N.C., April 27 /PRNewswire/ -- PPD, Inc. (Nasdaq: PPDI), ADoctorInYourHouse.com, and PPGx, Inc., a joint venture formed between PPD and Axys Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: AXPH), today announced a collaboration to provide a web-based education and information resource based on important developments in pharmacogenomics for consumers and healthcare professionals.
Pharmacogenomics is the science of using genetic information to predict the safety, toxicity and/or efficacy of drugs in individual patients or groups of patients. As the application of pharmacogenomics continues to increase in drug discovery and development and the awareness grows for its impact on medical diagnosis and treatments, educating the public on the role of pharmacogenomics for customized medicine becomes important for consumers, healthcare providers, and diagnostic and pharmaceutical manufacturers.
Under the agreement, PPD and ADoctorinYourHouse.com, a premier health and wellness community Internet company, will provide the site design, educational material production and marketing infrastructure in collaboration with the pharmacogenomic technical expertise and services of PPGx to create a global Internet resource on pharmacogenomics. The pharmacogenomics site will provide educational videos and chat rooms, insight to ethical issues, links to related sites and support groups for consumers. Combining the medical and scientific expertise of PPGx and PPD with medical experts and celebrities from entertainment from the ADoctorInYourHouse.com network to host the videos and chat rooms provides easy-to-understand information and educational resources for consumers and their healthcare providers.
As a part of the agreement, PPD has made a strategic investment in ADoctorInYourHouse.com. In addition, Dr. Fred Eshelman, chief executive officer of PPD, will join the board of directors of the Internet-based company.
"As pharmacogenomics becomes a commonly integrated component in future diagnosis and treatment regimens, qualified and reliable sources for information and education are imperative," stated Dr. Eshelman. "With the growth of the Internet as an information source, providing a pharmacogenomic infomediary through ADoctorinYourHouse.com can serve as a powerful and wide- reaching resource to consumers, healthcare professionals and the pharmaceutical industry."
The site will also be used to request and retrieve demographic and phenotypic data, the observable traits or characteristics of an individual, such as hair color or presence of a particular disease. This information will be provided directly from those individuals accessing the site and consenting to provide the information. In addition, PPGx will conduct genotyping research, including retrieval, testing and storage of the DNA, for samples from consenting individuals. Genotyping is the laboratory processes used to isolate DNA from clinical samples and detect the genetic variations that characterize the patient's drug metabolism, response and resistance. PPD will provide professional online and telephone patient counseling to individuals consenting to provides samples for genotyping. The resulting data will be made commercially available to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies for their drug development needs.
"The addition of genotyping research to this web site collaboration aligns with our commitment to discover predictive genetic markers for use in clinical trials to lead to life-saving and quality-of-life enhancing medicines," stated Josh Baker, Ph.D., chief executive officer of PPGx, Inc. "In addition to providing pharmacogenomic services to our pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients, we can also expand on our role to provide prescribers with a new way to understand safety profiles and efficacy parameters for different drugs and to educate consumers in preparation for customized medicines."
"We are very excited to begin working with PPD on expanding access to information around pharmacogenomics and to have Dr. Eshelman on our board of directors. The business possibilities that will result from this strategic relationship will benefit the hundreds of thousands of consumers who visit ADoctorInYourHouse.com seeking health and wellness information," commented Dr. Jonathan Sackier, chairman of ADoctorInYourHouse.com.
About ADoctorInYourHouse.com
Launched in November 1998, ADoctorInYourHouse.com is the first web site to produce and deliver celebrity-hosted medical programming through state-of-the- art streaming video technologies. Utilizing the world's leading medical experts, ADoctorInYourHouse.com also features daily medical updates, chat events, and support groups addressing a complete range of health and wellness issues.
About PPGx
PPGx (www.ppgx.com ) provides technical and consulting expertise in the application of pharmacogenomics to optimize and accelerate drug discovery and development. Combining genetic research technologies from its computational and research divisions, GLP/CLIA global laboratory services and a comprehensive bioinformatics platform, PPGx provides pharmacogenomic solutions for biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. A joint venture formed in February 1999 between PPD, Inc. and Axys Pharmaceuticals, Inc., PPGx is committed to the discovery of predictive genetic markers for use in clinical trials to result in delivery of therapeutic and life-saving medicines. PPGx pharmacogenomic services and products are exclusively marketed by PPD, Inc.
About PPD
PPD, Inc. (Nasdaq: PPDI) is a leading global provider of contract and consulting research and development services for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. With a corporate mission to provide services that maximize the return on clients' R&D investments, PPD provides innovative technologies, therapeutic expertise and comprehensive services for drug discovery and preclinical programs, Phase I-IV clinical development and post- market support. The company has more than 3,500 professionals in 47 offices in 19 countries around the world.
Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations and assumptions, including expectations and assumptions about the value of this collaboration to PPD, contained in the foregoing are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Although PPD has used best efforts to be accurate in making those forward-looking statements, it is possible that the assumptions made by management may not materialize. In addition, other important factors which could cause results to differ materially include the following: economic conditions in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries; outsourcing trends in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries; risks associated with acquisitions; loss of large contracts; competition within the CRO and pharmaceutical industries; continued success in sales growth; the ability to attract and retain key personnel; and the risk factors set forth from time to time in the SEC filings for PPD, copies of which are available upon request from the PPD investor relations department.
CONTACT: media, Nancy Zeleniak, 919-462-4088, or nancy.zeleniak@rtp.ppdi.com , or investors, Jimmy Sloan, 910-772-7168, or jimmy.sloan@wilm.ppdi.com , both of PPD, Inc., or media, Roger Friedensen of Epley Associates, 919-877-0877, or friedensen@epley-ral.com , for PPGx, Inc., or Charlene Chen, 310-201-8868, or cchen@shandwick.com, or Bryan Maxwell, 310-201-8892, or bmaxwell@shandwick.com , both of Rogers & Cowan for ADoctorInYourHouse.com
SOURCE PPD, Inc.
CO: PPD, Inc.; PPGx, Inc.; ADoctorInYourHouse.com; Axys Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
ST: North Carolina
IN: MTC HEA MLM EDU
SU: PDT
04/27/2000 11:23 EDT prnewswire.com |
