Nordic Bioscience has announced that its extracellular matrix (ECM) biomarker, PRO-C3 (nordicPRO-C3), will be available as a research use only (RUO) product in China through a license agreement with Roche, offered at LabCorp in Shanghai. This collaboration aims to provide Chinese drug developers and scientists with pre-IVD access to PRO-C3, a biomarker relevant for chronic diseases with a fibrotic component such as non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), and various solid tumors.
The PRO-C3 biomarker quantifies the formation of type III collagen through blood sample measurements. The FDA has issued a Letter of Support for further investigations of PRO-C3 as a proposed prognostic biomarker in clinical trials for patients with solid tumors. Tumor fibrosis is a common factor in some solid tumor types, associated with aggressive progression and poor overall survival.
The biomarker assay is conducted on the fully automated cobas® e platform from Roche, enabling broader market access with the RUO availability in China. The license agreement between Nordic Bioscience and Roche will extend to include multiple biomarkers on the cobas® e platform in the coming years, facilitating research and drug development in chronic diseases where the extracellular matrix (ECM) and collagens play central roles. This collaboration aims to accelerate the development of new drugs for debilitating chronic diseases, offering a more efficient and cost-effective approach to improving patients’ lives.