Daiichi-Sankyo to Install Corning^® Epic^® System

Corning Incorporated today announced that Daiichi-Sankyo Co. Ltd. purchased the Corning^® Epic^® System for installation and integration into drug discovery operations at its Kasai Research & Development Center in Tokyo. Daiichi-Sankyo is a global pharmaceutical innovator and Japan’s second largest drug maker. This purchase marks the entry of Corning’s microplate-based, label-free drug screening platform into the Japanese pharmaceutical market, following successful commercial launches in both North America and Europe.

"Because it is based on Corning's strong heritage in photonics, materials science, and life sciences, we are convinced that the Epic System will significantly contribute to our drug screening efforts and enable Daiichi-Sankyo to achieve great success," said Dr. Hiroshi Yokota, general manager, Exploratory Research Laboratories I, Daiichi-Sankyo Co. Ltd.

"Given Daiichi-Sankyo's recognized leadership in the pharmaceutical industry, we are very pleased with their decision to integrate the Corning Epic System into their drug discovery operations," said Tom Lynch, business director, Corning Epic System. "Corning has established a team of local Epic field application and service personnel to provide a strong foundation of support for the growing customer base in Japan."

The Epic System is a high-throughput, label-free screening platform based on optical biosensor technology. The system performs both biochemical and cell-based drug discovery applications and offers drug developers the ability to evaluate promising new drug targets. It also enables the observation of direct biological interactions not previously detectable in high-throughput applications.

The system uses optical technology to eliminate the need for labels and consists of two components: a disposable 384-well microplate with integrated biosensors and a high-throughput screening (HTS) compatible microplate reader that permits screening of up to 40,000 wells in an eight-hour period. Because it makes use of an industry standard microplate format, the Epic System can be easily integrated with existing facilities and instrumentation.