Quotient Sciences
Bringing a New Era of Drug Development

Right now, the world is going through its ultimate stress test because of the global pandemic. It goes without saying that the present crisis is forcing every organisation to be on a battle footing. Terms like ‘selfpreservation’ and ‘resiliency’ are not just mere words of motivation; they now hold the key to sustainability during this turbulent time of COVID-19.

Consider the pharmaceutical sector, for instance. Drug development is a lengthy and complex process and the costs involved are under continuous scrutiny. However, the pressure for pharma and biotech companies to get new products to patients faster is far greater than ever before. Drug companies need to mobilise their resources to get the products developed while also navigating through the competitive landscape of the healthcare sector. And, in the middle of such uncertainties and risks, the pharma and biotech companies are continuously being haunted by several questions.

- How can we make drug development more efficient?
- How can we get molecules to patients and the market faster?

A company that is steadfastly helping biotech and pharmaceutical companies seek answers for these questions is Quotient Sciences. “There are certain elements of the drug development process that could be made more efficient with the help of contract development and manufacturing organizations,” says Matthew Paterson, VP of strategic marketing at Quotient Sciences. And that is precisely where Quotient cements its cornerstone. “We are a service business with fully integrated pharmaceutical development, drug product manufacturing and clinical testing capabilities. This integration of services rapidly accelerates drug development timelines, removes the need for multiple vendors and allows our customers to save precious development time and money.” notes Paterson.

Founded in 1990, Quotient has been helping pharmaceutical companies accelerate new drug development with its formulation development, clinical pharmacology, and clinical and commercial manufacturing services, long before the world even postulated such an unsettling pandemic. With its proven reliability and impeccable quality standards, Quotient is consistently aiding its customers from the very early stage of candidate selection right through to its commercial launch. To make this a success, the company helps customers by delivering leaner and bespoke drug development programs that are tailored to a molecule, rather than adopting a “one-size-fits-all” approach.

Notably, the comprehensive drug development services of Quotient stand atop the three pillars: strong scientific and technical capability; agility; and an innovative organisational culture. Elaborating further, Paterson notes that Quotient constitutes of highly skilled cross-functional project managers and science teams that exhibit the company’s strong domain expertise and technical knowledge-base. In addition, a collaborative work culture across their global business enables Quotient’s teams to stay motivated and support its clients through every possible challenge.

What makes Quotient a cut above the rest is its range of highly integrated drug development services which facilitates faster drug development timelines.

Founded in 1990, Quotient has been helping pharmaceutical companies accelerate new drug development with its formulation development, clinical pharmacology, and clinical and commercial manufacturing services

The company’s Translational Pharmaceutics^® platform is one exemplar, integrating formulation development, real-time manufacturing and clinical testing, thereby reducing development timelines by more than 12 months (as shown in a recent publication by Tufts CSDD – an independent, academic, non-profit research center at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, Massachusetts). Alongside this, the skilled project managers and scientists of Quotient help clients to make informed decisions at every stage of development, reducing the probability of drug failure and getting the product to market faster.

Supplementing this, Quotient’s regulatory support and biopharmaceutics services give it an even greater distinctive edge compared to its competitors. The company’s team possesses an in-depth understanding of the evolving clinical trial regulations in Europe and the U.S. and provides clients with scientific, technical and strategic advice when preparing to submit program documentation for MHRA, EMA, and FDA approvals.

Offering an insight into how the company’s integrated services help clients achieve their desired result quicker, Paterson narrates the success story of Druggability Technologies (DRGT). The specialty pharma company was developing DRGT-46, a novel composition of a COX-2 inhibitor for pain. DRGT selected Quotient, at first to help transition from a simple formulation to a patient friendly drug product, then secondly to scale up the product and processes in readiness for commercial launch. The overall goals of the program were to develop the product as quickly as possible, reduce the complexity of drug development, simplify outsourcing and vendor management and minimize risk in the program. As an outcome, DRGT stated “Collaborating with Quotient Sciences enabled the rapid development, clinical assessment and commercial readiness of the product using integrated services across Quotient’s network of harmonized development and manufacturing sites in the UK and US”. “In working with Quotient, we have been able to bridge from Phase I product to commercial ready in 18 months which really is remarkable!”

Undoubtedly, such a multidimensional approach to drug development has made Quotient a popular name in the pharma landscape today. Building on this legacy, Quotient is now trying to break down different silos present in the pharmaceutical industry as seen in traditional CDMOs and CROs. Alongside this, the company is all set to grow via mergers and acquisitions without compromising its innovative organisational culture. “The U.S. healthcare sector is one of the largest markets for us, and we are perfectly positioned to cater to this geography,” says Paterson. On that front, Quotient is all set to expand in other European regions as well.