AMSBIO has introduced a unique High Throughput PARP in vivo Pharmacodynamic Assay that can be used to monitor the efficacy of poly-ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitors on PAR formation in vivo; and to measure drug action on PARP in both in vivo and in vitro settings.
In recent news, AstraZeneca reported upon how their ovarian cancer drug Lynparza (olaparib) is the first PARP inhibitor to be granted approval by the European Commission and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This has led to a surge of interest in this class of drugs, which can exploit tumour DNA repair pathway deficiencies to preferentially kill cancer cells.
Pharmacodynamic assays measure biomarkers that can quantify the molecular and functional effects produced by a drug on its intended target. Since pharmacodynamic biomarkers play important roles in deciphering disease processes and mechanisms of drug action, validated pharmacodynamic assays that accurately measure the effects of a drug on its target are becoming an essential component to clinical trials and the drug development paradigm.