Carcinotech and CELLINK partner on 3D bioprinting cancer drug development

Carcinotech and CELLINK have entered a partnership to develop and commercialize protocols for the biofabrication of 3D bioprinted tumor models based on cancer cell lines that improve accuracy and rapidly speed up drug development processes – driving down development costs and enabling an improved output. The protocols will be available for use on the BIO CELLX system offered by CELLINK.

According to CELLINK, globally, an estimated 19.3 million cancer cases occurred in 2020 alone, with a fatality rate of almost 10.0 million cancer deaths, with breast (11.7%), lung (11.4%), colorectal (10%), and prostate (7.3%) being the most fatal. While cancer continues to affect millions, there are still a limited number of effective therapies available, and those that are available have a high degree of variation from patient to patient.

Carcinotech has established itself as a leader in producing 3D bioprinted Micro-Tumors as well as 3D models based on cancer cell lines, incorporating CELLINK’s technology for automated workflows that have been perfected over the last 3 years. Working with patient-derived biopsies, immune cells, and cancer stem cells to develop 3D bioprinted Micro-Tumors, Carcinotech has been providing the pharmaceutical sector with crucial services in assisting researchers to optimize drug testing workflows. The protocols on the BIO CELLX will leverage cell line-based 3D models and will greatly accelerate research timelines. The 3D Cancer Cell Line Models have been developed to include the physiological representative ratio of 5 key cell types relevant to each cancer with widely available cell lines.

“We are looking forward to seeing the impact of this partnership on the oncology research community and look forward to the advancements that will be made in cancer research through the use of Carcinotech’s optimized cancer models. Combining Carcinotech’s in-depth understanding of cancer, and CELLINK’s BIO CELLX system’s precision and reproducibility, we hope to provide a new degree of efficiency to cancer research workflows,” said Cecilia Edebo, CEO of CELLINK.

Each of the protocols will enable 3D bioprinted cancer models that have undergone rigorous quality control measures – ensuring their dependability. As part of this agreement between CELLINK and Carcinotech, the protocols will be made available on CELLINK’s BIO CELLX 3D biodispenser. The BIO CELLX is the premier biodispensing system, providing customers with the ability to automate 3D cell culture workflows. By offering these protocols, CELLINK and Carcinotech will enable drug development researchers to rapidly increase the speed as well as the accuracy of results.

CELLINK and Carcinotech entered their first partnership in 2020 to further advance 3D bioprinting technology for cancer research. This initial collaboration leveraged Carcinotech’s vast expertise in patient-derived tumor replicas and CELLINK’s innovative bioinks, Extra Cellular Matrix (ECM), and Laminin-based Bioinks, which enable human cells to grow and thrive as they would in the human body.

“We are excited to continue working with CELLINK, a global leader in 3D bioprinting. Their unique technology as well as high-quality bioink, provide revolutionary capabilities to the wider life science and drug discovery market. Their extensive knowledge in 3D bioprinting combined with our expertise in oncology and 3D modeling will help fulfill our shared commitment to accelerate oncology drug development pipelines,” said Ishani Malhotra, CEO and Founder of Carcinotech.