Biotechnology company Second Genome is partnering with Arena Pharmaceuticals to identify gastrointestinal biomarkers, the companies announced Aug. 5.
Through the partnership, Second Genome will pair its sg-4-sight discovery engine with Arena's Cultivate clinical trial to identify microbiome biomarkers in order to "inform patient stratification and optimize potential treatments."
Arena's Cultivate trial is a clinical trial of the efficacy and safety of etrasimod, a drug candidate for patients with Crohn's disease.
"There is substantial evidence that gut microbiome is intricately involved in therapy response in gastrointestinal diseases," said Amit Munshi, president and CEO of Arena Pharmaceuticals. "We are pleased to collaborate with Second Genome to discover microbiome biomarkers predictive of clinical response."