Cimzia: which tox species, and why?

“Based on the species specificity of target binding, the cynomolgus monkey has been selected as the main species for toxicity testing.”

“Certolizumab pegol did not bind TNFα from rodents, rabbit, guinea pigs and dog, but it inhibited TNFα from non-human primates, with at least a 1000-fold lower activity than against hTNFα.”

“Instead, the homologous agent cTN3 PF, which is a chimeric Fab' fragment conjugated to 40 kDa PEG, was tested in the reproductive and developmental toxicity studies.”