Quintiles and PGT in Genomic Testing Pact

The two companies will apply large-scale genomic analyses to test clinical hypotheses and correlate biomarkers of disease prognosis and drug responsiveness.

Quintiles and Population Genetics Technologies Ltd. (PGT) announced Monday that they have formed a commercial alliance to bring genomic testing into mainstream drug development in an effort to produce safer, more effective medicines.

The two companies will jointly identify opportunities to apply large-scale genomic analyses to test clinical hypotheses and correlate biomarkers of disease prognosis and drug responsiveness. This approach is aimed at the rapid identification of rare and common genes that collectively account for significant variation in treatment responses.

The collaboration will use PGT’s technology, which can process hundreds of genomes simultaneously, in a single sequencing assay, while still retaining the ability to identify each indi