GlaxoSmithKline and Metabolon agree new research collaboration

GlaxoSmithKline is allying with diagnostics and research services company Metabolon on a new scientific collaboration.

The alliance will see Metabolon providing metabolomic profiling services to GlaxoSmithKline and collaborating on various other research projects. The joint research will take advantage of Metabolon's leading DiscoveryHD4 platform.

Through this partnership, GlaxoSmithKline will gain access to Metabolon's bioinformatics tools and proprietary disease ontologies, as well as visualisation tools that will integrate metabolomics data with existing genomics and proteomics data.

It will help scientists to gain new insights into key disease metabolic processes, drug action and patient response.

John Ryals, Metabolon's president and chief executive officer, said: "Gaps of knowledge can be bridged through the understanding metabolomics provides, which could lead to better targets, higher quality molecules, faster time to the clinic and reduced risk and cost."

Earlier this month, GlaxoSmithKline announced that Anoro, a combination therapy for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease developed alongside Theravance, has been approved in Europe.