Agilent Technologies' Venture Unit Invests in Genospectra Inc.'s Series C Round of Funding.PALO ALTO, Calif. -- Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange :A) today announced that Agilent Ventures has participated in the Series C Preferred Stock Stock shares that have preferential rights to dividends or to amounts distributable on liquidation, or to both, ahead of common shareholders. Preferred stock is given preference over common stock. Holders of preferred stock receive dividends at a fixed annual rate. funding round for Genospectra Inc., a privately held company privately held company A firm whose shares are held within a relatively small circle of owners and are not traded publicly. that develops innovative products and technologies for Parallel Quantitative Biology (PQB PQB Programa Qualidade Bahia (Brasil) PQB Primary Qualified Beneficiary (COBRA) PQB Prequalifying Business PQB Power Quest Batch ) to support systems biology and drug discovery efforts. Agilent Ventures' investment is part of a $16.4 million Series C funding round led by Battelle Ventures. Genospectra offers PQB technologies that enable life science researchers to dynamically and quantitatively understand cellular pathway function and complexity. Another Genospectra core technology, PAC probes, enables researchers to carry out dynamic, controllable assays of protein level, enzyme activity Enzyme activity A measure of the ability of an enzyme to catalyze a specific reaction. Mentioned in: Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase Deficiency , or gene silencing in live cells. "Agilent Ventures' investment in Genospectra demonstrates Agilent's ongoing commitment to develop the life science portfolio," said Fran DiNuzzo, vice president and general manager of Agilent's Integrated Biology Solutions unit. "Genospectra is developing novel biomolecular assays that can bridge gene expression with other emerging downstream applications, such as gene silencing or cell-based assays of protein function. We believe this will provide an advantage for researchers in genomics, proteomics and the emerging systems biology field." "We are very pleased that a high-caliber corporate venture fund like Agilent Ventures has chosen to invest in Genospectra," said Frank Witney, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Genospectra. "It demonstrates Agilent's continued commitment to cutting-edge technologies in the life sciences, and we are excited by potential synergies with their current and longer-term programs." About Genospectra Genospectra, Inc. is a privately held life science company developing technologies and products for Parallel Quantitative Biology (PQB). Genospectra's PQB initiative is focused on creating novel cell-based assays and tools that enable multiplex measurements of molecular events, such as intracellular pathway analysis, in a quantitative and scalable manner. Genospectra's first product line, the QuantiGene Reagent System, was launched in July 2003, and is powered by the FDA-approved and proprietary branched DNA DNA: see nucleic acid. DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid One of two types of nucleic acid (the other is RNA); a complex organic compound found in all living cells and many viruses. It is the chemical substance of genes. technology for gene expression analysis in cell-based assays. This novel technology is important in accurate quantitation of RNA RNA: see nucleic acid. RNA in full ribonucleic acid One of the two main types of nucleic acid (the other being DNA), which functions in cellular protein synthesis in all living cells and replaces DNA as the carrier of genetic levels without RNA purification, and is important in biomarker analysis, RNA interference RNA interference n. A process in which the introduction of double-stranded RNA into a cell inhibits the expression of genes. , microarray validation and predictive toxicology. The company's products are targeted to research cellular pathways, to dissect dissect /dis·sect/ (di-sekt´) (di-sekt´) 1. to cut apart, or separate. 2. to expose structures of a cadaver for anatomical study. dis·sect v. molecular models of human disease, and to discover the next generation of medicines. Genospectra is based in Fremont, Calif. For additional information, please visit the company's website at www.genospectra.com. About Agilent Ventures Agilent Ventures is a business unit of Agilent Technologies Inc. dedicated to investing globally in groundbreaking, privately held, early-stage technology companies. Additional information about Agilent Ventures is available at www.agilentventures.com. About Agilent Technologies Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE: A) is a global technology leader in communications, electronics, life sciences and chemical analysis. The company's 28,000 employees serve customers in more than 110 countries. Agilent had net revenue of $6.1 billion in fiscal year 2003. Information about Agilent is available on the Web at www.agilent.com. NOTE TO EDITORS: Further technology, corporate citizenship Corporate Citizenship The extent to which businesses are socially responsible in meeting legal, ethical and economic responsibilities placed on them by shareholders. The aim it to create higher standards of living and quality of life in the community in which it operates, while and executive news is available on the Agilent news site at www.agilent.com/go/news. |
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