Biomarker Assay Services
Biomarker results data have many uses and can be applied or utilized in different areas of science - from early research and biomarker discovery through drug development programs where they are used in early to late-stage clinical trials, to diagnostics and health management reviews. Creative Biolabs provides biomarker assay services to global neurobiological scientists to support your research.
Biomarkers can be classified in multiple ways:
- By their characteristics, namely whether they consist of an image or a molecule. Molecular biomarkers have biophysical properties that permit their detection in biological specimens using specific bioanalytical methods.
- By their application:
- Natural history biomarkers measure disease predisposition, diagnosis, stage or severity, prognosis, and outcome. Such biomarkers may be used for study entry criteria or stratification.
- Drug activity markers are used to demonstrate proof of concept, establish dosage regimens, optimize drug combinations, and measure pharmacodynamic response, i.e., how much the disease is affected by how much drug.
Additionally, biomarkers may be divided into 3 types according to their utility at different stages of drug development.
Table 1. Types of biomarkers.
| Biomarker Type | Utility | Explication |
| Type 1 | Exploration of possible responses to a given drug. | Markers of the natural history of a disease that correlate longitudinally with known clinical indices and indicate symptoms over the full range of disease states. |
| Type 2 | Demonstration of drug activity. | Pharmacodynamic markers capture the effects of an intervention in accordance with the mechanism of action of the drug, a mechanism that might not necessarily be associated with a clinical outcome. |
| Type 3 | Description of drug efficacy. | Markers that provide a description of drug efficacy via surrogate endpoints are intended to substitute for a clinical endpoint when a change in this type of biomarker would predict a clinical benefit. |
Tools for Biomarkers Assay
Creative Biolabs lists each type of biomarker and its target source below.
Table 2. Types of biomarker techniques by target source.
| Target Source | Biomarker | Advantages | Disadvantages |
| Genomics | DNA (genes) and mRNA | Speed, well-developed technology. | Often requires biopsy or cell collection. |
| Transcriptomics | mRNA expression variants | A larger number of potential biomarkers. | Less standardized than genomics. |
| Proteomics | Proteins and peptides | Applicable to cells, tissues, and biological fluids. | Technology in development; many different approaches. |
| Metabolomics/metabonomics | Biochemical metabolites | Applicable to a wide range of biological fluids. | Limited to processes resulting in changes in the metabolome. |
In the future, biomarkers will measure multiple parameters driven by genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, in vivo imaging, and high-content biology, new approaches that are making possible the development of "personalized medicine". Creative Biolabs has a professional scientific research team, expertise, and state-of-the-art technology to provide you with biomarker assay services. If you are interested in learning more, please contact us for technical support.
