ApconiX sees sales boost as demand for drug safety expertise increases

A nonclinical safety company that works with the pharma sector based in Alderley Park, ApconiX, has increased sales by five-fold as a result of the industry’s demand for drug safety expertise.

Additionally, the company just received ‘Start-Up of the Year’ at the recent awards hosted by BioNow — the northern England bio-medical and life sciences membership organisation.

Founded in 2015 by Professor Ruth Roberts, Dr Richard Knight and Dr Michael Morton, ApconiX delivers expertise in safety toxicology and ion channel electrophysiology to a changing pharmaceutical sector, in which more companies are outsourcing their essential drug safety testing and analysis.

“We formed the company with a drive and ambition to create a world-renowned business known for nonclinical expertise supporting drug discovery and development,” explained Roberts. “Since then, the take-up of our services has gone way beyond our expectations and includes companies, venture-capital funded organisations, charities and academia.”

The company how has more than 60 clients across the UK, US and Europe including Pfizer, UCB and Gilead, as well as biotechs, start-ups and university spin-outs. Current clients also include the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), HESI and the Institute for Cancer Research.

“Our cost-effective, flexible approach complements the way the pharmaceutical industry has evolved in recent years, with large pharma reducing its internal capability and outsourcing key skills to trusted partners,” continued Roberts. “Meanwhile, there are many more pharma sector SMEs needing access to specialised services. That’s why we have established our own laboratory to help meet the market need for high quality data.

“Ultimately, our knowledge and expertise helps companies developing new drugs to make better decisions on drug safety.

“As identified in the government’s Life Sciences review 2016, drug discovery and development needs greater collaboration to de-risk the process and reduce the number of project failures caused by safety toxicity. The changing face of drug discovery and development means a safe pair of hands is needed to help companies navigate the difficult pathway towards safe, effective and profitable drugs.”