Service: Partner Services

Thanks to our worldwide and competent partners, we are able to diversify our portfolio of research services we are offering. With mutual technological and intellectual support, we are offering a wide diversity of environmental and biological services.

Kindly have a look at the different services we offer and send us your request by filling out the form at the bottom of this page.

Following USP or ISO rules we can offer different types of assays and measurement in the following domains:

• Endotoxins (USP <85>)
• Bioburden – Membrane Filtration (ISO 11737-1:2018)
• Sterility (ISO 11737-2:2019)
• Particulate Matter in injection (USP <788>)

• Yeasts and Moulds (ISO 16212:2017)
• Detection of Candida albicans (ISO 18416:2015)
• Detection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ISO 22717:2015)
• Total Mesophilic Count (ISO 21149:2017)
• Detection of Staphylococcus aureus (ISO 22718:2015)
• Detection of Escherichia coli (ISO 21150:2015)
• Evaluation of anti-microbial protection of cosmetic products – Challenge test (ISO 11930:2019)

• Total Mesophilic Count (ISO 6222:1999)
• Total Viable Count, Yeast & Moulds and Pathogens (ISO 14698-1/2:2003)
• Microbiology of the Food Chain – Horizontal method for the detection, enumeration and serotyping of Salmonella spp. (ISO 6579-1:2017)
• Biocontamination of air & surface (ISO 14698-1/2:2003)
• Particle Count (ISO 14644-1/2:2015)
• Cleanroom Qualification (ISO 14644-3:2005)

Nuclear imaging is the reference molecular imaging tool. A non-invasive technique with a very high sensitivity, it allows in vivo studies of physiological, biochemical and molecular processes. Complementary to more morphological imaging techniques such as radiology, ultrasound or MRI, it provides functional and metabolic data. Widely used in clinical practice, it is also an extremely effective research tool.

Our partner has a state-of-the-art preclinical imaging tool dedicated to small animals. This scanner has several modalities: PET (Positron Emission Tomography) and SPECT (Single Photon Emission Tomography) imaging for monitoring radiotracers; and also an X-ray scanner for obtaining anatomical images. The acquisitions obtained by the three modalities of the device are reconstructed to give dynamic images of a very high precision.

Several studies can be conducted on this device. In the case of new radiotracers, the evaluation of their biodistribution (mapping of the distribution of the molecule in the body) and their pharmacokinetics (study of the fate of the molecule in the body over time) is carried out on the preclinical scanner. The results obtained thus make it possible to conclude on the diagnostic potential of the radiotracer studied on a pathology.

This imaging tool can also be used to evaluate the therapeutic effectiveness of new molecules using validated radiotracers used in nuclear medicine.

It allows to monitor some pathologies like cancer, bone destruction thanks to clinical tracers like 18F-FDG, 99mTc-MDP, 18F-NaF. But it is also possible to label your test item with radioisotopes in order to study their biodistribution after in vivo injection. Indeed, a radiochemistry unit is attached to this imaging unit. It is possible to label molecules with 18F, 68Ga and 99mTc.

Our partner has the necessary tools to carry out the different stages of the development of a radiopharmaceutical: choice of the target to be explored, synthesis of the molecule, radiolabeling, biological evaluation. Imaging protocols in animal experiments are strictly controlled by an ethics committee.

Our partner offers its expertise in phytochemistry, biochemistry, cell biology, microbiology and sensory analysis, for the research and development of plant extracts, new ingredients or finished products.

Their general objective is to highlight the chemo diversity of the plants of Reunion Island as well as other parts of the world and to characterize the biological effects of the extracts produced to propose new natural sources of bioactive molecules that could be applied in various formulations, particularly cosmetics, after feasibility studies and validation of regulatory tests.

Before cosmetic products are placed on the market, the safety of the product and the safety of the consumer are indeed essential: “Cosmetic products placed on the market within the Community must not be harmful to health” (Directive 76/768/EEC, article 2).

The services proposed by our partner include:

• Bibliographical studies, scientific and technological watch

• Optimization of extraction methods (conventional or innovative) and characterization of extracts (sensory and physico-chemical analyses)

• Phytochemical, spectroscopic and chromatographic analyses (equipment available and methods validated within our platform) for the profiling and characterization of a sample (composition and content of active ingredients).

• Toxicological analyses to determine the cytotoxic effects of samples (IC50 on cell lines).

• In vitro biological activity tests (cytotoxicity, antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-enzymatic effect) on cell or cell-free models.

• Microbiological analyses, study of the stability and conservation of cosmetic products (enumeration and detection of unspecified and pathogenic microorganisms on finished products or raw materials, accelerated ageing test, Challenge-test).

NMR uses the same basic principle as MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging). It involves using the magnetic properties of atomic nuclei such as hydrogen (1H), carbon (13C), nitrogen (15N) or fluorine (19F) in the presence of an intense magnetic field. In the case of MRI, this makes it possible to obtain a two- or three-dimensional image of a part of the body, such as the brain or heart, and to diagnose diseases such as multiple sclerosis, to detect the presence of tumors or to study joint problems.

Areas of application:

• NMR is used to study molecules. Its fields of application have been increasing steadily over the past 25 years. There are two types of NMR: NMR that studies liquids and NMR that studies solids. In high-field liquid NMR, one of the main applications is the study of the structure of biological macromolecules (protein, DNA), their interactions and their movements, which allow a better understanding of their function.

• NMR is also widely used in chemistry to identify and/or characterize molecules derived from synthesis or extracted from plants. In pharmacology, NMR is also used to identify potential drugs. In the medical field, the technique is increasingly used to analyze the molecular composition of biological fluids such as blood serum and urine, thus enabling the diagnosis of certain diseases. Very recent developments have even made it possible to study the composition of intact tissues such as biopsy fragments without having to resort to a molecule extraction step that alters the composition of the sample, and this technique appears to be very promising for the early diagnosis of tumors, as in breast cancer for example.

• This same technique is also applied in food science by analyzing the composition of foodstuffs such as fruit, cheese, meat and fish, inserted directly into the device. The list is not exhaustive and there is no doubt that the field of application of NMR will continue to expand in the years to come, as it has a major advantage over other techniques: it does not destroy the sample.

Our partners are particularly qualified to perform genetic experiments (DNA extraction, PCR, purification, sequencing and electrophoresis analysis) on nuclear and mitochondrial DNA of blood and Epithelial cells.