Molecular Diagnostics
Voluntary Genetic Testing for Incoming Frosh at UC Berkeley: The Saga Continues
The unprecedented and hotly debated "Bring Your Genes to Cal" program put into place by the University of CA, Berkeley (UCB) for this coming school year's freshmen has encountered a roadblock. The program as the university originally designed it would have provided all participating students with their genetic test results for three common genetic variants (alcohol metabolism, folic acid metabolism, and lactose metabolism). However, earlier this month the California Department of...
Recent Headlines Full of Hope and Potential for Both Alzheimer’s and IVD
 The diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease has held a prominent position in U.S. news this month. For starters, scientists at UC Irvine reported an important discovery related to memory retrieval (or the lack thereof) in Alzheimer’s patients. Secondly, the Alzheimer’s Association and the National Institute on Aging held a conference call to clarify their position on their new proposed guidelines for Alzheimer’s diagnosis. And finally, a study published in the Archives of...
Chronix Biomedical Data Could Change Cancer Diagnosis
Chronix Biomedical reported a summary of data supporting the utility of its serum DNA blood tests for the early and accurate detection of breast cancer and prostate cancer. The testing algorithms developed by Chronix detected and correctly identified DNA fragments in the blood from dying (apoptotic) cancer cells with 92% sensitivity and 100% specificity in both prostate cancer and breast cancer. If confirmed in larger studies, these results would outperform those obtained from current...
Patents On Breast Cancer Genes Ruled Invalid
Patents on genes associated with hereditary breast and ovarian cancer are invalid, ruled a New York federal court today. The precedent-setting ruling marks the first time a court has found patents on genes unlawful and calls into question the validity of patents now held on approximately 2,000 human genes. The ruling follows a lawsuit brought by a group of patients and scientists represented by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Public Patent Foundation (PUBPAT), a not-for-profit...
NIH Announces Genetic Testing Registry
NIH announced that it is creating a public database that researchers, consumers, health care providers, and others can search for information submitted voluntarily by genetic test providers. The Genetic Testing Registry (GTR) aims to enhance access to information about the availability, validity, and usefulness of genetic tests. Currently, more than 1,600 genetic tests are available to patients and consumers, but there is no single public resource that provides detailed information about them...
Sequenom Secures License for AMD Test
Sequenom Inc. announced an exclusive worldwide licensing agreement with Optherion Inc. Under the agreement, Sequenom's CAP accredited and CLIA-certified laboratory, Sequenom Center for Molecular Medicine (Sequenom CMM), obtained the rights to develop and commercialize diagnostic tests to predict genetic predisposition to late stage age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The license agreement covers extensive intellectual property rights for the most significant AMD-related genetic variants...
Biocartis Gains Philips' Molecular Diagnostics Technology
Molecular diagnostics company Biocartis and Royal Philips Electronics announced the signing of an agreement that will result in Biocartis acquiring Philips’ technology platform for rapid fully-automated DNA/RNA molecular diagnostic testing. The platform has been designed for applications in a wide range of patient sample testing, including oncology and infectious diseases. Financial details of this agreement were not disclosed. Biocartis will develop and commercialize the platform, together...
Thermo Fisher Scientific to Acquire Finnzymes
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Finnzymes, a provider of integrated tools for molecular biology analysis, including reagents, instruments, consumables, and kits. Headquartered in Espoo, Finland, Finnzymes has 90 employees and generated revenue of $20 million in 2009. Finnzymes provides comprehensive solutions for high-performance polymerase chain reaction (PCR), reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR), and real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR). The company's...
Cepheid Reports Q4, 2009 Results
Cepheid reported revenue for the fourth quarter of 2009 of $49.2 million. Net loss was $4.3 million, or $(0.07) per share, which compares to revenue of $37.8 million and a net loss of $6.0 million, or $(0.10) per share, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008. Excluding amortization of purchased intangible assets and stock compensation expenses, non-GAAP net income for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009 was $0.3 million, or $0.01 per share. This compares to a non-GAAP net loss of $2.5 million, or...
Fluidigm, IntegraGen Collaborate on Genetic Analysis Service
Fluidigm, the inventor of integrated fluidic circuits (IFC), has joined with IntegraGen SA, a provider of genetic research testing services, to bring IFC technology to French researchers. IntegraGen will offer services to its customers using the Fluidigm BioMark System for Genetic Analysis and the Access Array sample preparation system for next-generation sequencing. IntegraGen’s lab will also be a demonstration site for researchers investigating Fluidigm’s technology. Fluidigm instrumentation...