Galapagos'
service division meets the pharma industry's need for drug discovery
tools and expertise by providing a full range of services, from
target discovery through to delivery of pre-clinical candidates.
The main business areas of BioFocus and Argenta include biology
(target discovery and screening), compound libraries, medicinal
chemistry and ADME/PK services. BioFocus' and Argenta's global
client base includes pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies,
academic institutions and patient foundations. With operations
in the UK, The Netherlands, Switzerland, the USA and a sales
offices in Japan and Singapore, this service division is well
positioned to support this client base.
BioFocus' strong expertise and full suite of target-to-drug
discovery services and products has afforded a premium positioning
in the fast-growing R&D outsourcing market. BioFocus' revenues
have grown by 10-15% annually since it was acquired by Galapagos
in October 2005, and the division has been profitable since
2008.
Argenta's contract research operations, which include expertise
in medicinal chemistry, computer-aided drug discovery, in vitro
biology and screening, analytics and in vivo pharmacokinetics,
have a strong reputation for scientific excellence. With clients
such as Antisoma, AstraZeneca, BioTie, Genentech and Novartis,
Argenta Discovery was BioFocus' second largest competitor in
the high-end segment. While revenue growth rates have been lower
than those of BioFocus, Argenta's order book is strong and its
margins are among the highest in the industry.
For
more information, visit www.biofocus.com
or www.argentadiscovery.com
Related
publications
Biology
calls the targets: combining RNAi and disease biology
van Es HH, Arts GJ
Drug Discov Today. 2005 Oct 15;10(20):1385-91
Functional
screening of viral siRNA libraries in human primary cells
Bortone K, Michiels F, Vandeghinste N, Tomme P, and van Es H.
Drug Discov World. 2004 Fall:20-27
Adenoviral
vectors expressing siRNAs for discovery and validation of gene
function
Arts GJ, Langemeijer E, Tissingh R, Ma L, Pavliska H, Dokic
K, Dooijes R, Mesic E, Clasen R, Michiels F, van der Schueren
J, Lambrecht M, Herman S, Brys R, Thys K, Hoffmann M, Tomme
P, van Es H
Genome Res. 2003 Oct;13(10):2325-32
Arrayed
adenoviral expression libraries for functional screening
Michiels F, van Es H, van Rompaey L, Merchiers P, Francken B,
Pittois K, van der Schueren J, Brys R, Vandersmissen J, Beirinckx
F, Herman S, Dokic K, Klaassen H, Narinx E, Hagers A, Laenen
W, Piest I, Pavliska H, Rombout Y, Langemeijer E, Ma L, Schipper
C, Raeymaeker MD, Schweicher S, Jans M, van Beeck K, Tsang IR,
van de Stolpe O, Tomme P, Arts GJ, Donker J
Nat Biotechnol. 2002 Nov;20(11):1154-7. Erratum in: Nat Biotechnol.
2003 Feb;21(2):199
