Etap-Lab
French preclinical CRO offering in vivo pharmacology in neuroscience, pain and dermatology, plus related safety studies.
About CNS & Neuroscience
CNS programs combine two hard problems: getting a drug to the brain or spinal cord, and showing that it changes something meaningful once it arrives. Most large molecules, oligonucleotides and gene therapies cannot cross the blood-brain barrier in useful amounts, so preclinical work often relies on direct routes such as intrathecal, intracerebroventricular (ICV) or intra-cisterna magna (ICM) dosing.
This page lists CROs offering CNS delivery routes, neurodegenerative disease and pain models, behavioral assessment, electrophysiology, and CNS safety pharmacology. Surgical CNS delivery in large animals, particularly nonhuman primates, is offered by relatively few labs, so confirm experience with your specific route and species first.
CNS and Neuroscience CROs
Showing 23 CROs. Order rotates daily so no lab is permanently listed first.
Preclinical Surgeon
With over 15 years of hands-on preclinical surgical experience, I deliver expert-level surgical support for in vivo studies across a broad range of therapeutic areas. I specialize in CNS drug delivery in nonhuman…
The Jackson Laboratory (JAX In Vivo Services)
Nonprofit mouse genetics institute offering contract in vivo pharmacology using its own strains and humanized and PDX models across oncology, neuroscience, metabolism and immunology.
PharmOptima
Michigan CRO offering in vivo ADME and pharmacokinetics, LC-MS/MS bioanalysis and biochemistry, with a niche in ocular drug development.
Lovelace Biomedical
Preclinical in vivo pharmacology and toxicology with aerosol/inhalation expertise.
PsychoGenics
Preclinical CNS CRO offering behavioral pharmacology, translational neuroscience, EEG and disease models for psychiatric and neurological programs.
Transpharmation
Translational neuroscience CRO with sites in the UK, Ireland and Canada offering CNS disease models, EEG and behavioral pharmacology.
Scantox
GLP-accredited preclinical CRO headquartered in Denmark with sites in Sweden, Austria and the UK. Known for Gottingen minipig work and regulatory toxicology, with discovery pharmacology including CNS and…
Neuro-Sys
French neuroscience CRO dedicated to in vitro and in vivo models of neurodegenerative and neurological disease, with a US office.
Noble Life Sciences
Preclinical CRO offering in vivo pharmacology, toxicology, and surgical services.
Biomere
Biomere (a JOINN company) is a preclinical CRO based in Worcester, MA. Services include non-GLP PK/PD, discovery toxicology, surgical services, disease models, and laboratory sciences. Surgical services include…
Science in Action
Israeli preclinical CRO offering in vivo pharmacology and disease model studies.
Pharmatest Services
Finnish preclinical CRO focused on bone and joint disease, bone metastasis and oncology models, including osteoarthritis and osteoporosis efficacy studies.
Porsolt
Preclinical in vivo pharmacology with CNS/behavioral expertise and multiple disease models.
ANEWCRO, LLC.
ANEWCRO is a nonclinical contract research organization (CRO) dedicated to providing innovative solutions and support to the biopharmaceutical industry, biotech startups and academic institutions. With unlimited access…
Biospective
Montreal-based neuroscience CRO combining neurodegenerative disease models with MRI imaging, quantitative neuropathology and image analysis.
SynAging
French CRO focused on neurodegeneration and brain aging, offering in vivo models and readouts for Alzheimer's and related diseases.
Biotrial
French CRO combining early clinical development with preclinical pharmacology, offering CNS and cardiovascular safety pharmacology and translational neuroscience models.
Charles River Laboratories
Global preclinical/clinical CRO with extensive safety assessment, pharmacology, and discovery services.
Neuron Experts
French neuroscience CRO offering in vitro and in vivo models for neurological and neurodegenerative drug discovery.
Melior Discovery
In vivo pharmacology CRO near Philadelphia running a broad catalog of efficacy models across CNS, pain, metabolic and inflammatory disease.
BIOQUAL
Nonclinical CRO supporting infectious disease and other in vivo studies; bioanalysis and pathology support.
Northern Bio (Northern Biomedical Research)
Preclinical CRO in West Michigan specializing in targeted CNS delivery. Long track record supporting intrathecal, intracerebroventricular and cisterna magna dosing, CSF and tissue distribution, pharmacokinetics and…
Questions to ask when choosing a CNS & Neuroscience CRO
- Which CNS routes have you performed in our species in the past year, and in how many animals?
- How is dose placement confirmed, and what are your catheter patency and complication rates?
- Can CSF, plasma and tissue samples all be collected from the same animals?
- Which behavioral or functional endpoints have you validated in this model, and are they scored blind?
CNS & Neuroscience CRO FAQs
What is a neuroscience CRO?
A neuroscience or CNS CRO runs preclinical studies for drugs aimed at the brain, spinal cord or peripheral nerves. That covers disease models for neurodegeneration, pain and psychiatric indications, behavioral testing, electrophysiology, CNS safety pharmacology, and direct CNS delivery by intrathecal, ICV or intra-cisterna magna routes for therapies that cannot cross the blood-brain barrier.
Which CROs specialize in CNS electrophysiology for drug discovery?
CNS electrophysiology spans in vivo EEG and single-unit recording, ex vivo brain slice recording, patch clamp and multi-electrode arrays. Few labs offer all of them, so match the method to your question: target engagement and network effects in vivo, or mechanism and circuit effects in slices. Ask which brain regions, species and disease models each lab has recorded in before.
Which CROs can deliver drugs intrathecally, ICV or into the cisterna magna?
Direct CNS delivery is a surgical skill, and results depend heavily on the in-life team. Ask about catheter patency over the study duration, how tip placement is confirmed, maximum validated dose volumes, and complication rates in your species. Our team has hands-on surgical experience with these routes, and it shapes how we assess the labs listed here.