FDA Awards Absorption Systems Phase II SBIR Grant for CellPort Technologies

EXTON, Pa.--(Business Wire)--
Absorption Systems LP today announced that it has been awarded a Phase II Small
Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) to continue development of the company`s CellPort
Technologies testing platform. This unique assay platform enables more specific
prediction of potential drug-drug interactions mediated by human drug transport
proteins. CellPort Technologies will become a key component of what is referred
to as "Translational Medicine," the process of translating the results from in
vitro assays in model systems into human outcomes in the clinic.

CellPort Technologies is a suite of proprietary in vitro test systems designed
to provide definitive human prediction regarding interactions of drugs with a
class of proteins called drug transporters. Drug transporters play a vitalrole
in mediating drug disposition throughout the body. A drug that interferes with
the ability of a transporter to eliminate another (co-administered) drug can
lead to elevated levels of the second drug, raising concerns about drug safety
and toxicity.

"One benefit of the CellPort approach is that we have maintained species
continuity," said Al Owen, Ph.D., Senior VP of Scientific Operations. "Unlike
results from other commonly used test systems, our results are not confounded by
the presence of non-human transporters. Positive interactions with the CellPort
system will translate directly to the clinic, as these systems are non-ambiguous
models for human drug-transporter interactions. Other test systems for drug
transporters can produce ambiguous, and sometimes confusing, experimental
outcomes."

Patrick M. Dentinger, President and CEO of Absorption Systems, added, "We are
proud to have been awarded this grant and are very encouraged by the commitment
from the FDA to develop better, more predictive research tools. We feel strongly
that models of human origin will ultimately be the tools of choice in future
drug development programs. This grant is another step in the commitment by the
FDA to reach the goal of Translational Medicine."

The grant will allow Absorption Systems to dedicate staff for the next two years
to optimize, scale-up and ultimately commercialize the technology.

About Absorption Systems

Absorption Systems, founded in 1996, assists pharmaceutical and medical device
companies in identifying and overcoming ADMET (Absorption, Distribution,
Metabolism, Excretion and Toxicity) barriers in the development of drugs and
medical devices. The company's mission is to continually develop innovative
research tools that can be used to accurately predict human outcomes or to
explain unanticipated human outcomes when they occur. The CellPort Technologies
platform, a suite of human cell-based tests systems for drug transporter
characterization, exemplifies Absorption Systems' commitment to innovation and
is soon to be an industry assay standard for in vitro drug interaction
assessment. Absorption Systems has facilities near Philadelphia, Pa., and San
Diego, Calif., and serves customers in Asia and Europe through partners. For
information on the company's comprehensive contract services and our applied
research programs please visit http://www.absorption.com.

Absorption Systems LP
Chris Bode, Ph.D., 1-610-280-1451
cbode@absorption.com
www.absorption.com
or
Schwartz Communications
Laura Kempke or Wendy Mejia, 1-781-684-0770
absorptionsystems@schwartz-pr.com

Copyright Business Wire 2009