Discovery Center

By MPI Research

During her first 18 months at MPI Research, she has led initiatives to enhance the Discovery Research offerings of the company and has advanced specialized services in other key service delivery areas.  Currently, Dr. Rogers is charged with leading the effort to establish MPI Research's Discovery Center, which will consolidate drug discovery related services into a distinct business unit within MPI Research. With 20 years of experience in the CRO industry, she has held key leadership positions, most recently as Vice President of Drug Development at Southern Research Institute.  Dr. Rogers received her PhD from the Medical University of South Carolina in molecular and cellular biology and pathobiology.  She completed postdoctoral fellowships at Harvard Medical School and Tufts University School of Medicine.  As a current member of the MBA Advisory Board at the Auburn University School of Business, she also serves on the Gerson Lehman Group Healthcare Council.

Tina Rogers, PhD, MBA, DABT, joined MPI Research as the Associate Director of Research in August 2007. Dr. Rogers brings a unique combination of scientific and business experience to MPI Research.

What exactly is a Discovery Center and how is it related to a preclinical research contract research organization?
A Discovery Center typically centralizes specialized services to address the early preclinical development needs of pharmaceutical and biotech companies. The MPI Research Discovery Center is unique in that it is completely customer-driven, in that it was created to meet the specific discovery needs of our Sponsors in these industries. In addition to DMPK capabilities, the Discovery Center offers expertise in a variety of in vivo models, including surgical, cardiovascular, neurobehavioral, anti-microbial, and inflammatory models and others. To support the in vivo studies, we can provide a variety of endpoints, including molecular imaging (micro-PET and micro-CT), gene expression profiling, quantitative PCR, cytokine multiplexing (MSD), flow cytometry, and other cell-based analyses. 

Why did MPI Research think it was necessary to have a Discovery Center as a separate entity at this time?
The demand for preclinical discovery work continues to increase, as our Sponsors are faced with critical decisions about which drug candidates to advance. Even as large pharmaceutical companies continue to downsize and biotechs restructure, the need for discovery resources doesn't go away. The market for outsourced drug discovery services was more than $5 billion in 2007 with expected annual growth of about 16% through 2013. MPI Research has the experienced staff, technology, and resources that are needed to establish a dedicated organization that is totally committed to the discovery needs of our Sponsors. Toward this end, we recently acquired two research buildings from Pfizer, located in downtown Kalamazoo, just 13 miles from MPI Research headquarters. This will be the site of the Discovery Center, as the location allows substantial opportunity for future expansion of these services.

What specific benefits will the Discovery Center of MPI Research offer to your Sponsors?
MPI Research has been one of the fastest-growing preclinical CROs over the past decade because we are focused on the needs of our Sponsors. The Discovery Center will extend our commitment of responsiveness and quality to the area of discovery services. Following their discovery research, Sponsors will be able to seamlessly and cost-effectively transition their drug candidates from the Discovery Center to other preclinical service areas within MPI Research.

What distinguishes the Discovery Center at MPI Research from other discovery service providers in the industry?
MPI Research recognized that discovery services require a different business model and approach than regulatory-driven services such as toxicology. The best way to provide the flexibility and dedicated, individualized attention for  our Sponsors is to establish a separate organization specifically for that purpose. We are convinced that this unique approach will better serve our clients. 

How do you see the Discovery Center of MPI Research developing over the next 5-10 years?
We will expand and enhance our capabilities in discovery services, based on the needs of our Sponsors. Currently, we are exploring partnerships that will provide access to proprietary technologies related to predictive models of safety and efficacy. We will continue to establish collaborations to enhance our scientific perspective, allowing us to gain access to expertise and to participate in comprehensive drug development initiatives that will distinguish MPI Research as a center of excellence for discovery research.