As soon as the new building at Pivot Park is completed, Oncolines will be one of the first tenants to move into their new base. Currently, Oncolines has fifteen employees spread over two floors in the Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Building. Guido Zaman, Managing Director of Oncolines, expects a steady growth of the company in the coming years.

Oncolines combines cell biology, genomics and informatics

“Oncolines is a subsidiary of the Netherlands Translational Research Center (NTRC), the company I started in 2012 with my MSD/Organon colleague Rogier Buijsman,” says Zaman. “From 2012 to 2021, NTRC worked on new technologies to help develop novel drug candidates. These include a cancer cell line panel and bioinformatics analysis tools. We used these technologies to support our in-house drug discovery but also to provide services for clients. Over the years, NTRC has developed so fast that we decided to separate the precision medicine services and to expand it further as Oncolines.”

Cancer cell line panel
“The company is named after our cancer cell line panel and our flagship services product, Oncolines. We have a collection of more than two hundred cancer cell lines derived from many different solid tumors and blood cancers.” This extensive collection is central to the studies that Oncolines conducts for bio-techs and pharmaceutical companies worldwide.

“Both drug candidates in (early) stage of development and existing medicines are tested on the cell line panel. We know which cancer genes are switched on, and which cancer suppressors are switched off in the different cell lines. By combining data from cell proliferation assays performed in our laboratories with the genomic information we have from the cell lines, we identify biomarkers that predict the response to new therapies, and can make recommendations for further research.

“We help companies to make well-founded decisions in the drug development process. These new drugs can be chemicals, or biologicals, such as antibodies. We help them to enhance and refine their research process, or to improve existing medicines, possibly broadening their application. For instance, by identifying new drug combinations. Our mission is to bring new and improved cancer therapies to the right patient population faster.”

Thanks to our RESEARCH companies can make well-founded decisions in the trajectory from gene to drug

Pivot Park – Specialist Infrastructure & perfectly placed for partnerships.
Zaman refers to the location on Pivot Park as being ideal. Initially it was important that he and his team could use the existing infrastructure and equipment. The labs were on familiar turf and the necessary permits and infrastructure were already in place.

“When we started NTRC in 2012, there was no need to relocate. MSD/Organon handed over the labs to us, which meant they didn’t have to be dismantled, and we were able to get started right away. Our company has developed a lot since then and we have grown primarily through collaborations and partnerships. More than half our sales comes from the US. In addition, we have a significant client base in Japan and the Netherlands. Despite the fact we have nice labs and offices in the old RE-building, we look forward to moving into the new building in two years from now.”

Leaving Pivot Park was never an option for Zaman, “Over the years, the science park has become more and more attractive. There is a real community feeling here. A number of other companies are clients and with the Pivot Park Screening Center (PPSC) we conduct joint projects for clients.”