Zifo, a global enabler of AI and data-driven enterprise informatics for science-driven organisations, has developed and launched the In Vitro Pharmacology (IVP) Assay Repository, marking a significant step toward standardising the capture, sharing, and reuse of biological assays across the life sciences industry.
Zifo launched the IVP Assay Repository in partnership with Pistoia Alliance and Pharma Majors. The company’s Scientific Informatics and Data experts worked collaboratively with regulatory authorities and Pistoia Alliance members, including steering committee representatives from AbbVie, Novartis, Merck, and Roche.
The life sciences industry has struggled with fragmented in vitro pharmacology data, inconsistent assay documentation, and limited interoperability across organisations and platforms, hindering efficient data exchange, cross-study comparison, and the reuse of assay data. The new IVP Assay Repository addresses this by providing a framework for researchers to register and manage in vitro pharmacology assays consistently and transparently.
By applying controlled vocabularies and standardised data fields, the repository, which builds on public ontologies such as the Bioassay Ontology (BAO), ensures higher-quality data, reduces duplication, and serves as a shared foundation that benefits the entire biopharma ecosystem.
Aishwarya Balajee, head of Scientific Data and Digital at Zifo, said, “We are excited to see the release of version 1.0 of the IVP Assay Repository. This is an important milestone toward a more open and interoperable future for biological data. Over the past two years, Zifo has been proud to collaborate with the Pistoia Alliance and its member community to help design and build this standardised biological assay registration platform. By enabling interoperable assay registration within a shared, open framework, the IVP Assay Repository helps the industry consistently describe, discover, and reuse assays across organisations. We look forward to seeing the broader scientific community leverage this platform to strengthen collaboration, improve reproducibility, and accelerate innovation.”
Christian Baber, chief portfolio officer at Pistoia Alliance, said, “By enabling a standardised way to register protocols, the Assay Repository facilitates the systematic transmission of in vitro pharmacology data, reducing the time spent on manual data cleanup and ensuring that critical safety information is both transparent and easily accessible. It is an open, centralised bioassay repository linked to standardised result templates that addresses the critical need for industry-wide consistency during data exchanges such as IND submissions. The IVP Assay Repository creates a shared foundation that benefits the entire biopharma ecosystem.”
Key impacts of the repository include:
- Enhanced data exchange and interoperability: Provides a FAIR-aligned, centralised repository for in vitro pharmacology assays, improving assay discoverability, consistency in assay documentation, and interoperability across platforms and organisations.
- Industry Collaboration: Facilitates cross-sector collaboration between biopharma companies, CROs, technology providers, and regulatory stakeholders by promoting a common framework for assay registration and information sharing.
- Informatics Excellence: Utilises Zifo’s deep expertise in scientific informatics to provide a guided interface where users can easily search, filter, and contribute new entries covering assay design, targets, and molecular details.
