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deCODE Genotyping Laboratory Receives College of American Pathologists Accreditation

Posted on: Wednesday, 20 May 2009, 09:25 CDT

REYKJAVIK, Iceland, May 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- deCODE genetics (Nasdaq:DCGN) today announced that its CLIA-registered DNA isolation and genotyping laboratory, which processes the company's deCODEme(TM) personal genome scans and risk assessment diagnostic tests for several common diseases, has been accredited by the American College of Pathologists (CAP) following a recent inspection. The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has granted the CAP Laboratory Accreditation Program deeming authority, and its accreditations can also be used to meet many state certification requirements.

"We believe that testing for genetic risk factors for common diseases is going to play a central role in refocusing our healthcare system on prevention and early intervention. deCODE has led the way in discovering validated genetic risk factors for diseases with a major impact on public health, and in bringing to market products that put this knowledge in the hands of individuals and their doctors. Quality - in our world-leading science and in-house genotyping and data analysis - sets us apart from our competition in the field of personal genomics. CAP certification serves to emphasize this advantage and will enable us to provide our products to an ever wider public," said Kari Stefansson, CEO of deCODE.

The CAP Laboratory Accreditation Program, begun in the 1960s, is an internationally recognized program for certifying laboratory quality based upon inspections conducted by practicing laboratory professionals. CAP inspectors examine a laboratory's records and quality control of precedures for the preceding two years; the qualifications of all staff; equipment and facilities; safety program and record; and overall management. The inspections program is designed to ensure the highest standard of care for all laboratory patients.

About the College of American Pathologists

The College of American Pathologists (CAP) is a medical society that serves more than 17,000 physician members and the laboratory community throughout the world. It is the world's largest association composed exclusively of pathologists and is widely considered the leader in laboratory quality assurance. The CAP is an advocate for high quality and cost effective medical care.

About deCODE

deCODE is a bio-pharmaceutical company developing drugs and DNA-based tests to improve the treatment, diagnosis and prevention of common diseases. Its lead therapeutic programs, which leverage the company's expertise in chemistry and structural biology, include DG041, an antiplatelet compound being developed for the prevention of arterial thrombosis; DG051 and DG031, compounds targeting the leukotriene pathway for the prevention of heart attack; and DG071 and a platform for other PDE4 modulators with therapeutic applications in Alzheimer's disease and other conditions. deCODE is a global leader in human genetics, and has identified key variations in the genome (SNPs) conferring increased risk of major public health challenges from cardiovascular disease to cancer. Based upon these discoveries deCODE has brought to market a growing range of DNA-based tests for gauging risk and empowering prevention of common diseases. Through its CLIA-registered laboratory, deCODE offers deCODE T2(TM) for type 2 diabetes; deCODE AF(TM) for atrial fibrillation and stroke; deCODE MI(TM) for heart attack; deCODE ProstateCancer(TM) for prostate cancer; deCODE Glaucoma(TM) for a major type of glaucoma; and deCODE BreastCancer, for the common forms of breast cancer. deCODE is delivering on the promise of the new genetics.SM Visit us on the web at http://www.decode.com; on our diagnostics site at http://www.decodediagnostics.com; for our pioneering personal genome analysis service and new focused disease scans, integrating the genetic variants included in these tests and those linked to another twenty common diseases, as well as for our new deCODEme Cardio(TM) and deCODEme Cancer(TM) scans, at http://www.decodeme.com; and on our blog at http://www.decodeyou.com.

Any statements contained in this presentation that relate to future plans, events or performance are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, and the timing of events, to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among others, those relating to our ability to obtain sufficient financing to continue as a going concern, the outcome of the review of the continued listing of our common stock on The Nasdaq Stock Market, our ability to develop and market diagnostic products, the level of third party reimbursement for our products, risks related to preclinical and clinical development of pharmaceutical products, including the identification of compounds and the completion of clinical trials, our ability to form collaborative relationships, the effect of government regulation and the regulatory approval processes, market acceptance, our ability to obtain and protect intellectual property rights for our products, dependence on collaborative relationships, the effect of competitive products, industry trends and other risks identified in deCODE's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, the risk factors identified in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and any updates to those risk factors filed from time to time in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q or Current Reports on Form 8-K. deCODE undertakes no obligation to update or alter these forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE deCODE genetics Inc

Source: PR Newswire

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