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Disease Modeling
Transferring mechanistic biology into a disease environment for drug development
Why are physiologically relevant disease models essential to bridging the gap between discovery and clinical translation?
Disease modeling platforms are designed to identify the effects of a drug candidate in disease relevant cells and microenvironments. The results corroborate efficacy, reduce translational risk and guide strategic decisions across your discovery pipeline.
Within all our assays, it’s possible to select the most appropriate cell type (such as T cells polarized towards a disease phenotype, or iPSC-derived microglia carrying disease-associated mutations and isogenic controls) and model system (including tumor spheroids and organotypic brains slices), providing you with a clear disease-relevant understanding of the impact of your therapeutic. Our PhD qualified scientists are happy to discuss adapting existing assays to your needs or developing entirely new approaches.
Disease modeling throughout drug development
Drug discovery and development, with an increase in new approach methodologies (NAMs), continues the significant shift toward human-centric disease models. By applying disease models across multiple therapeutic themes, including immuno-oncology, immunology, oncology, neuroscience and liver disease as well as inflammation, autoimmunity and fibrosis, we ensure that your development program is grounded in disease-relevant biology.
Why disease modeling matters in your therapeutic area
Traditional animal and simplistic in vitro models often fail to predict human outcomes, contributing to late-stage failures. By contrast NAMs using human-centric, multi-cellular disease models help you:
- De-risk translation by capturing clinically relevant phenotypes.
- Deconvolute complex biology in immunology or neurodegeneration.
- Test modality-specific hypotheses (e.g. immune modulation, neuronal rescue).
- Accelerate candidate progression with decision-enabling functional endpoints.
With this as our foundation, at Concept Life Sciences we embed our disease modeling capabilities into each therapeutic area to reinforce your confidence in target selection and candidate validation.
Read more about NAMs in the article by Hayley Gooding, Biology Services Director:
New Approach Methodologies: Why the Future of Drug Development Must Be Human in The Medicine Maker.
Our disease modeling approach
The solutions we offer are tailored to reflect the complexity of human disease. To provide flexibility, we layer complexity across three axes:
- Assay complexity: Monocultures to co-culture and multicellular systems.
- Cell diversity: Utlize cell lines, primary cells and iPSC-derived cells or combinations thereof within assays.
- Culture system variability: Assays can be conducted in both 2D and 3D culture systems (spheroids, organotypic systems) expanding the scope and depth of modeling capabilities.
Supporting models using disease-associated mutations and matched isogenic controls, enables our scientists to dissect mechanism in a controlled, human-relevant setting. Learn more about our functional assays.
How we support each therapeutic area
Below is how our disease modeling services integrate with and enhance the capabilities you expect from your therapeutic area strategy.
By integrating disease modeling into each therapeutic domain, we help you generate biologically grounded hypotheses, validate your mechanism, and define functional benchmarks early.
Translational value across your pipeline
Early discovery: Test target perturbation in physiologically relevant contexts.
Lead optimization: Monitor functional endpoints (e.g. cytotoxicity, synaptic rescue) in disease contexts.
Preclinical de-risking: Complement in vivo studies with human-relevant evidence.
Biomarker strategy: Correlate model readouts with translational endpoints.
Our disease models provide the contextual relevance needed to reduce ambiguity and promote confident advancement.
Get started
Whether you’re developing immunotherapies, neuroprotective agents, or immune-modulating drugs, we can collaborate from concept through clinical translation. Our disease modeling team, integrated with assay development, molecular biology, and translational biology, delivers the support you need to move forward with conviction.
Speak with an expert to explore how our disease modeling platforms can power your therapeutic area strategy.
FAQs
Q: What types of disease models do you offer?
A: We offer a range of human-relevant in vitro models, from simple 2D systems to complex 3D co-cultures and organoids, supporting oncology, immuno-oncology, immunology, and neuroscience research.
Q: Can you develop custom models for specific mechanisms or pathways?
A: Yes. We frequently co-develop bespoke models to explore unique disease mechanisms or therapeutic modalities, incorporating custom cell types, gene edits, or microenvironmental conditions.
Q: What endpoints can your models deliver?
A: Our disease models support diverse readouts including viability, cytokine profiling, immune activation markers, imaging-based phenotypes, electrophysiology, and gene expression analysis, enabling both mechanistic and functional insight.
Q: How do you ensure models are translationally relevant?
A: We focus on human biology, using primary cells, iPSC-derived systems, and clinically relevant materials and benchmark against known pharmacology and biomarkers to ensure clinical alignment.
Q: How can disease modeling support my therapeutic area program?
A: By capturing disease-specific interactions, our models help you validate mechanisms, test therapeutic hypotheses, and de-risk translation across immuno-oncology, immunology, oncology, and neuroscience programs.
Q: How do I get started?
A: Get in touch with our biology team to discuss your therapeutic focus and discovery goals. We will help define the right disease modeling strategy to accelerate your next stage of development.
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