Lab21 acquires new real-time PCR technology

Cambridge, U.K.—Lab21 Ltd., a global player in the personalized medicine andclinical diagnostics markets, has secured a worldwidelicense from Cooperative Diagnostics to use the latter company's suite of patents andexpertise for the development of Lab21's growing pipeline of moleculardiagnostic  kits.

 

Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed.

 

CooperativeDiagnostics, based in Greenwood, S.C., has undertaken what it calls "completely innovative approaches" to develop novel molecular technologiesby using biophysical models and statistical bioinformatics. The company already hassuccessfully commercialized a series of assays in the infectious diseasearea to demonstrate the capability of their technology.

 

"Lab21 has established a global businessin immunodiagnostic assays. The company is also developing a pipelineof nucleic-acid tests. The Cooperative Diagnostics technologies bringpowerful new tools to our development capability including fifthgeneration real-time PCR technology and we expect to launch our first CEmarked companion diagnostic assays using this technology during thefirst half of 2012," said GrahamMullis, CEO of Lab21, about the deal. "These tests will be commercialized through ourinternational distribution networks and particularly through our keyglobal OEM partners."

 

Dr.Berwyn Clarke, chief scientific officer at Lab21, noted that as part of this agreement Lab21 has exclusive use of this technology on a set of defined biomarker targets,particularly in the oncology and infectious disease areas. "Preliminarywork has shown that assay development times can be reduced significantlyand that performance is often better in terms of existing goldstandards of sensitivity and specificity," Clarke added. "We expect the technology todeliver a substantial number of new assays in the first 12 months andwill be of significant interest to pharmaceutical companies needing tofast track companion diagnostic development."

 

For Cooperative Diagnostics, the deal means the ability to accelerate its rate of developing and deploying tests, noted the company's president and founder, Dr.Brent C. Satterfield, who added, "We are confident that our technologywill provide a springboard to strengthen Lab21's continued growth intothe coming years."