Odyssey Thera has expanded its agreement with Pfizer Inc. to profile compounds across Odyssey Thera's panel of cell-based assays in order to characterize mechanism of action and pathway activity in human cells.

The project with Pfizer will focus on 500 compounds from multiple therapeutic areas. "By screening compounds across our panel of assays, we can identify and eliminate unanticipated activity much earlier in the drug discovery and development process, before significant resources are invested in pre-clinical and clinical activities," says Dr. John Westwick, Odyssey Thera's CSO. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Odyssey Thera's patented Protein-fragment Complementation Assay (PCA) technology measures pathway activity within living cells and is applied across signalling pathways relevant to drug discovery in key therapeutic areas. Odyssey Thera probes the intricate biochemical networks of living cells to identify on-target and off-pathway activities of drugs and lead compounds. The company has validated this approach in its Known and Unknown Drug Optimization Strategy (KUDOS) programme, which analyzed the mechanism of action of known drugs and known toxicants across distinct signalling nodes in human cells.

Odyssey Thera, Inc. is a privately held biotechnology company that utilizes a pathway-based approach to drug discovery in order to greatly improve the effectiveness and productivity of the drug development process.