Affymetrix and bioMerieux expand infectious disease collaboration.Affymetrix, Inc. (Santa Clara Santa Clara, city, Cuba Santa Clara (sän`tä klä`rä), city (1994 est. pop. 217,000), capital of Villa Clara prov., central Cuba. , CA) and bioMerieux Inc. (Marcy-l'Etoile, France) have expanded the collaboration agreements between the companies to enable the development of a broad spectrum of tests in infectious disease Infectious disease A pathological condition spread among biological species. Infectious diseases, although varied in their effects, are always associated with viruses, bacteria, fungi, protozoa, multicellular parasites and aberrant proteins known as prions. and industrial testing using Affymetrix GeneChip brand probe arrays. bioMerieux will launch its first product resulting from the collaboration with Affymetrix in the fourth quarter of 2003. This product will be used to verify the authenticity and origin of food and animal feed. Under the terms of the expanded agreement, bioMerieux will have non-exclusive access to Affymetrix technology for the determination of virulence factors Virulence factors are molecules produced by a pathogen that specifically influence their host's function to allow the pathogen to thrive. Factors that are used in general life processes, such as metabolism or bacterial cell structural components, may be vital to the pathogen's , bacterial strain typing, and sepsis Sepsis Definition Sepsis refers to a bacterial infection in the bloodstream or body tissues. This is a very broad term covering the presence of many types of microscopic disease-causing organisms. diagnosis, including host pathogens response to infections. bioMerieux has added rights in fields outside bacteriology bacteriology Study of bacteria. Modern understanding of bacterial forms dates from Ferdinand Cohn's classifications. Other researchers, such as Louis Pasteur, established the connection between bacteria and fermentation and disease. to develop new assays for Hepatitis B Hepatitis B Definition Hepatitis B is a potentially serious form of liver inflammation due to infection by the hepatitis B virus (HBV). It occurs in both rapidly developing (acute) and long-lasting (chronic) forms, and is one of the most common chronic Virus, Respiratory and Central Nervous System infectious panels. bioMerieux plans to commercialize products, Powered by Affymetrix technology, with a new instrument and software platform developed by bioMerieux. Under the expanded collaboration agreement, Affymetrix will receive upfront and milestone payments and receive royalties for all collaborative products that are developed and commercialized by bioMerieux. "bioMerieux's launch of the FoodExpert-ID product marks the introduction of microarray products for industrial applications," said Robert Lipshutz, Ph.D. Senior Vice President of Corporate Development at Affymetrix. "Affymetrix technology provides a proven, standardized platform for analyzing complex genetic information in a wide variety of applications and markets." "The collaboration with Affymetrix is highly important in this field and demonstrates our determination to remain a major player within in vitro diagnostics In vitro diagnostic (IVD) tests are medical tests conducted in a test tube, or more generally in a controlled environment outside a living organism. In vitro means in glass in Latin. and especially in molecular biology molecular biology, scientific study of the molecular basis of life processes, including cellular respiration, excretion, and reproduction. The term molecular biology was coined in 1938 by Warren Weaver, then director of the natural sciences program at the Rockefeller ," added Dr. Christophe Merieux, Vice President and Director of Medical Affairs and Research. "Access to Affymetrix' GeneChip platform will allow us to introduce novel diagnostic tests into clinical routine while benefiting from Affymetrix' groundbreaking technology and industrial scale manufacturing capabilities." Affymetrix applies the principles of semiconductor technology to life sciences. The company's customers include pharmaceutical, biotechnology, agrichemical ag·ri·chem·i·cal n. Variant of agrochemical. , diagnostics and consumer products companies as well as academic, government and other non-profit research institutes. Affymetrix offers an expanding portfolio of integrated products and services, including its integrated GeneChip platform, to address growing markets focused on understanding the relationship between genes and human health. bioMerieux designs, develops, manufactures and markets reagents and automated instruments for medical analyses, and product quality control in the agri-food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries. With sales of 944 million Euros in 2002, bioMerieux ranks as the eighth largest biological diagnostics company worldwide. In 2002, investment in research and development represented over 12% of sales. Over 82 % of its activity takes place on an international level. bioMerieux employs 5,450 people throughout the world, including 1,550 people in the US and 2,100 in France. The Group counts 12 research and 14 production sites distributed in the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. , Europe and Brazil. Affymetrix, Inc. +1-408-731-5925 www.affymetrix.com bioMerieux Inc. +01-53-70-74-64 |
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