Gaithersburg, MD -- (SBWIRE) -- 11/28/2013 -- Trevigen Inc. has been awarded $252,000 for the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I Contract, 261201300042C, from the National Cancer Institute and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop a tumor-aligned 3D coculture system. Dr. Gabriel Benton is the Principal Investigator.

“Many anticancer drugs fail in human trials despite showing efficacy in in vitro studies and animal models. It has become clear that 2D in vitro monoculture assays do not reflect the complex cellular composition and microenvironment of the tumor tissue, and this may explain their failure to predict clinical efficacy” says Dr. Hynda Kleinman, former NIH PI.

The goal of this NIH funded contract is to develop an in vitro tumor-aligned 3D culture model representative of the human tumor tissue architecture using breast cancer, stromal, and endothelial cells and test this model with known effective anticancer drugs.

The first objective of the contract is to optimize the composition of the extracellular matrix and the cell model to elicit physiological tumor morphology and behavior. The second objective is to characterize changes in gene expression for this model, comparing it with traditional 2D and 3D culture models. The final objective is to validate the model as effective by evaluating its physiological properties in response to anti-cancer drug treatments.

“Successful implementation of this model would save significant cost and time for drug development, ultimately benefiting the patient and society” says Michael Elliott, President of Trevigen, Inc.

About Trevigen Inc.
Trevigen is a Maryland-based company that develops and delivers innovative technologies and systems for the study of cancer, drug development, regenerative medicine, and translational research. The company’s objective is to provide researchers with assays that are innovative and more physiologically relevant. Trevigen is dedicated to the development of 3D culture assays and products and has become an industry leader in that area. For additional information please, visit http://www.trevigen.com/.