Taconic Biosciences News

Resulting Studies Will Provide Critical Reference Data to Drive Advancements in Human Health Rensselaer, NY — September 3, 2019 - Taconic Biosciences, a global leader in providing genetically engineered animal model solutions, announces its participation in the second Rodent Research Reference (RRR) mission to the International Space Station. Taconic has a history with NASA dating back to 1985. While previous NASA programs were collaborations with academic and/or...  Read More

On July 29, 2019, Taconic Biosciences announced the launch of the first commercially-available diet-induced NASH rodent model. These models will help accelerate clinical development of NASH treatments because they are readily-available off-the-shelf at are varying ages already expressing the symptoms of NASH. These models will save researchers months of planning and accelerate the discovery of novel liver failure treatments: "Aiming to speed up and facilitate the clinical...  Read More

New Model Saves Researchers Time as They Study the Devastating Disease Rensselaer, NY — July 29, 2019 - Taconic Biosciences, a global leader in providing drug discovery animal model solutions, announces the launch of the first commercially available diet-induced NASH (nonalcoholic steatohepatitis) rodent model. NASH is a dangerous subtype of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and has recently garnered increased attention in the biomedical community due to...  Read More

The mission of the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society is to enrich the lives of animals and the people who love them. It's a perfect fit with Taconic's values, so it was a perfect match for the two companies to work together. The humane society (based in Menands, NY) collects bottles to return for recycling and uses the funds to offset animal medical care costs and facility improvements....  Read More

Taconic Biosciences' Dr. Megan MacBride penned this article for AALAS to discuss how to properly care for humanized mice such as allowing time to acclimate, limit handling, among other suggestions worth heeding: "When lab mice are received at a research facility, investigators typically are eager to enroll them in a study as soon as possible. That's understandable, given the pressure to speed drug discovery and accelerate time-to-market...  Read More

Rensselaer, NY — June 3, 2019 - Taconic Biosciences, a global leader in providing genetically engineered rodent model solutions, announces that all commercial mouse colonies and contract mouse breeding barriers are free of a newly discovered pathogen. Taconic is the first and only commercial animal vendor to exclude mouse kidney parvovirus from its animals at all health standards. In an October 2018 Cell paper, an Australian and...  Read More

In a recent article published in Lab Animal, Taconic Biosciences' Dr. Megan MacBride comments on the current landscape of commercially-available NASH mouse models. One challenge for developing a model that accurately represents the condition is in the replication of both genetic and environmental effects. While the DIO mouse will not usually exhibit the severe symptoms associated with NASH, multiple model generation companies are working to develop and...  Read More

In an article recently published in International Pharmaceutical Industry, Taconic Biosciences' Dr. Caroline Horizny discusses five different methods for genetically modifying mouse and rat models. Each method is different and has both advantages and disadvantages depending on the type of model to be generated. Horizny evaluates random and targeted transgenesis, RNA interference, homologous recombination in embryonic stem (ES) cells, and CRISPR/Cas9 and Easi-CRISPR: "The first germline transmission-capable...  Read More

In an article recently published in The Translational Scientist, Taconic's Dr. Alexander Maue and Dr. Ivan Gladwyn-Ng review the role of the microbiome and development and treatment of cancer. While most early studies involving the microbiome focused on diseases relating to the gastrointestinal tract, researchers are beginning to study how microbiome composition impacts tumor development and whether a given therapeutic is effective. Specifically, the microbiome has been...  Read More

In a recent article published in Drug Discovery World, Taconic Biosciences's Dr. Michael Seiler explains how there have been multiple mergers and acquisitions of key biotech and pharma companies in the last five years. One specific area that has seen major growth is in the field of immunotherapy drugs — drugs that use a patient's immune system to fight cancer. Of note would be the acquisition of...  Read More