ZECARDIO · Project

Faster Drug Safety Testing Using Live Zebrafish Instead of Cell Cultures

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Before a new drug reaches patients, companies need to make sure it won't damage the heart — and right now, that testing is slow, expensive, and often unreliable. ZeCardio uses tiny zebrafish embryos as living test subjects because their hearts work surprisingly like ours. They built a system that can screen thousands of drug candidates at once, watching how each one affects heart rate, blood flow, and rhythm in a real living organism. Think of it as upgrading from testing a car engine on paper to actually running it on a track — but at industrial speed.

By the numbers

Cardiac and vascular parameters measured (heart rate, arrhythmia, AV blockage, ejection fraction, blood flow, vasodilatation/constriction)

Pilot test completed and optimized

100%

Industry participation ratio in consortium

The business problem

What needed solving

Drug companies lose billions when compounds fail late in development due to unexpected heart toxicity — one of the top reasons for drug withdrawals from the market. Current preclinical screening using cell-based assays often misses cardiac risks because cells in a dish don't behave like cells in a beating heart. Companies need a faster, cheaper, and more predictive way to catch cardiotoxic compounds before they reach expensive clinical trials.

The solution

What was built

ZeClinics built and optimized a high-throughput screening platform using live zebrafish embryos to test drug candidates for cardiotoxicity. The system measures six parameters — heart rate, arrhythmia, AV blockage, ejection fraction, blood flow, and vasodilatation/constriction — and completed a pilot test demonstrating the optimized screening workflow.

Audience

Who needs this

Pharmaceutical companies with large compound libraries needing early cardiac safety dataContract research organizations (CROs) expanding preclinical toxicology servicesBiotech startups seeking affordable preclinical de-risking for investorsDrug safety and pharmacovigilance departments at mid-to-large pharmaAcademic drug discovery centers transitioning candidates toward clinical development

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Pharmaceutical Drug Development

enterprise

Target: Pharma companies with large compound libraries needing preclinical cardiotoxicity screening

If you are a pharmaceutical company dealing with high failure rates in late-stage clinical trials due to unexpected cardiac side effects — this project developed a zebrafish-based high-throughput screening system that measures heart rate, arrhythmia, AV blockage, ejection fraction, blood flow, and vasodilatation/constriction in live organisms, giving you more reliable safety data earlier in the pipeline.

Contract Research Organizations (CROs)

mid-size

Target: CROs offering preclinical safety and toxicology services

If you are a contract research organization looking to differentiate your preclinical screening services — this project built an in vivo high-throughput cardiotoxicity platform using zebrafish embryos that screens large drug libraries faster than traditional cell-based assays. Adding this to your service portfolio could attract pharma clients who need better predictive capacity before committing to costly mammalian studies.

Biotech Startups

SME

Target: Early-stage biotech companies developing new therapeutic compounds

If you are a biotech startup with limited budget trying to validate your drug candidates for cardiac safety before approaching investors — this project offers a screening service that tests compounds in a live organism model, measuring parameters like heart rate, arrhythmia, and ejection fraction. This can help you de-risk your pipeline without the cost of full animal studies.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What does ZeCardio's screening service cost compared to traditional preclinical testing?

Specific pricing is not disclosed in the project data. However, zebrafish-based high-throughput screening is positioned as a faster and cheaper alternative to traditional in vivo preclinical studies. Contact ZeClinics directly through their product page for current service pricing.

Can this system handle industrial-scale screening of large compound libraries?

Yes, the system was specifically designed for high-throughput screening (HTS) of large drug libraries. The pilot test deliverable confirmed optimization of the screening process for handling compound volumes at scale in a live organism setting.

What is the IP and licensing situation?

ZeClinics SL is a Spanish SME that developed and owns this technology. The project was funded under the SME Instrument (Phase 2), which means the company retains full IP rights. Licensing or service agreements would need to be negotiated directly with ZeClinics.

What exactly does the system measure?

The platform measures six cardiac and vascular parameters: heart rate, arrhythmia, AV blockage, ejection fraction, blood flow, and vasodilatation/constriction. These are measured in live zebrafish embryos, providing in vivo data rather than cell-culture approximations.

Is this accepted by regulators as valid preclinical data?

Based on available project data, the system is positioned for preclinical screening to improve candidate selection before regulatory studies. Zebrafish models are increasingly recognized in pharmacology, but the project data does not specify formal regulatory acceptance of results as a replacement for mandated animal studies.

How long does a screening run take?

Based on available project data, the system is designed for high-throughput processing, meaning it handles large libraries in a systematic and time-efficient manner. Specific turnaround times per compound or batch are not provided in the project documentation.

Can ZeClinics support integration with our existing drug discovery pipeline?

ZeClinics operates as a service provider with a dedicated product (ZeCardio) accessible through their website. Based on the project scope, the screening is offered as a service where you submit compounds and receive cardiac safety data, which can feed into your existing pipeline decision points.

Consortium

Who built it

This is a single-company project by ZeClinics SL, a Spanish SME that received SME Instrument Phase 2 funding — one of the EU's most competitive grants for market-ready small businesses. The 100% industry consortium with no academic partners signals that this is a commercial product development effort, not a research exercise. ZeClinics is the sole owner, developer, and future seller of this technology, which simplifies any business engagement — there is one decision-maker and one point of contact.

ZECLINICS SLCoordinator · ES

How to reach the team

ZeClinics SL is a Spanish biotech SME — contact their business development team through zeclinics.com

Order a report on this consortium See ZECLINICS SL profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want an introduction to ZeClinics for cardiotoxicity screening services? SciTransfer can arrange a direct meeting with their team.

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