WuXi PharmaTech (Cayman) Inc. (ADR) : WuXi PharmaTech Announces Licensing Agreement for Patient-Derived Xenograft Models with Mayo Clinic’s Center for Individualized Medicine

SHANGHAI, Nov. 4, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — WuXi PharmaTech (NYSE: WX), a leading pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device research and development outsourcing company with operations in China and the United States, today announced a licensing agreement with Mayo Clinic’s Center for Individualized Medicine to expand WuXi’s collection of patient-derived xenograft (PDX) mouse models. These models will support the cancer drug discovery and personalized medicine efforts of WuXi’s global customers.

Under this agreement, WuXi has been granted an exclusive license for a panel of patient-derived xenograft models for prevailing cancers in Western countries that have been developed in connection with the center’s research and patient care. The Mayo collection supplements WuXi’s unique and extensive Chinese PDX collection, which includes more than 500 Chinese patient-derived xenograft models, more than 220 of which have been deep-sequenced using whole exome sequencing at 100X. By combining PDX models derived from cancer tissues of patients representing Chinese and Western ancestries, WuXi is creating a single platform to allow its global customers to select highly relevant models with a higher probability of success for testing targeted therapies.

“This agreement with the internationally renowned Mayo Clinic enables WuXi to provide the global research community with a unique single resource that will help advance cancer research through a more relevant and clinically directed approach,” said Dr. Ge Li, Chairman and CEO of WuXi. “We look forward to working with world-class organizations like Mayo Clinic to further strengthen our integrated, open-access R&D services platform, which enables anyone and any company to discover and develop new medicines for improved patient care.”

“We are delighted to work with WuXi, an organization with a strong reputation and industry leadership, to make our PDX models broadly available to the global cancer research community,” said Dr. Gianrico Farrugia, Director of Mayo Clinic’s Center for Individualized Medicine. “We hope use of these models leads to more predictive approaches to the discovery and development of personalized cancer therapies for patients.”

Mayo Clinic has a financial interest in the technology mentioned in this news release. Revenue Mayo receives is used to support the clinic’s not-for-profit mission in patient care, education and research.

About WuXi PharmaTech

As a research-driven and customer-focused company, WuXi PharmaTech (Cayman) Inc. provides a broad and integrated portfolio of laboratory and manufacturing services throughout the drug and medical device R&D process. WuXi PharmaTech’s services are designed to assist its global partners in shortening the cycle and lowering the cost of drug and medical device R&D. WuXi AppTec is the name for the operating subsidiaries of WuXi PharmaTech. For more information, please visit: http://www.wuxiapptec.com.