Bio-Rad Launch New Bio-Plex Pro™ RBM Kidney Toxicity Panels for the Early Detection and Characterization of Kidney Toxicity and Injury During Drug Development

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. announces the launch of its new Bio-Plex Pro RBM human, rat, and canine kidney toxicity panels at the 2013 Society of Toxicology (SOT) annual meeting in San Antonio, TX, March 10–14. Developed through a partnership with Myriad RBM, Inc., the multiplex immunoassays comprise a set of biomarkers that addresses the need for early detection and characterization of kidney toxicity and injury during drug development.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a potentially deadly condition frequently caused by kidney damage due to drug exposure, trauma, or blood loss during a medical procedure. In contrast, chronic kidney injury (CKI) results from long-term diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, or an inherited syndrome.

Protein biomarkers found in urine can signal early signs of kidney toxicity and injury and may provide additional information about the location and severity of damage. The Bio-Plex Pro RBM assays enable the detection of multiple biomarkers in a single sample, which may reveal damage within hours of kidney injury. This early detection will allow for more efficient drug testing in both preclinical and clinical research settings.

“The decades-old current clinical tests are not able to detect damage early enough, as evidenced by the fact that two-thirds of the kidney may be irreparably damaged once the traditional biomarkers become elevated,” said Dr. Dominic Eisinger, director of strategic development for Myriad RBM. “The Bio-Plex Pro RBM panels encompass the most sensitive early markers of kidney injury for preclinical and clinical studies.”

The toxicity panels contain six of the seven markers approved by the FDA and EMEA for use in preclinical kidney toxicity assessment. Included in these panels are several other markers relevant to kidney toxicity and damage research. The assays are offered as kits that include everything needed to run the assay.

“The Bio-Plex Pro RBM kidney toxicity assays will allow preclinical researchers to monitor biomarker profiles that may predict drug toxicity in the clinic,” said Chris Linnevers, Bio-Rad’s Bio-Plex global product manager. “They also enable clinical researchers to monitor both disease progression and kidney injury during drug trials, which ultimately leads to better-optimized treatment and improved patient care.”