Researchers at Orion Genomics and Washington University in St. Louis Collaborate to Uncover DNA's 'Second Code' for Development of New Cancer Tests
Posted on: Tuesday, 9 August 2005, 09:01 CDT
ST. LOUIS, Aug. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Orion Genomics announced today that it has initiated several collaborations with leading researchers at Washington University in St. Louis to discover novel biomarkers for the development of tests that screen for cancer at an early stage and provide information about how tumors should be treated. In the collaborations, scientists at Orion and Washington University will focus on the most common cancers including lung, breast, cervical, prostate and ovarian cancer and will look for "Second Code" biomarkers that indicate the presence of cancer and how it will respond to certain therapies.
Second Code biomarkers, or DNA methylation patterns, provide information on the regulation of genes. The research will enable Orion to develop tests that detect trace amounts of methylated tumor DNA in easy to access tissues such as blood serum, biopsies, and cell scraps. The company expects to market the tests within three years.
Key researchers in these collaborations are from Washington University School of Medicine and include; Paul Goodfellow, Ph.D., Professor of Surgery, Genetics, Obstetrics and Gynecology; Peter Humphrey, MD, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Surgery; Howard McLeod, Pharm.D., Professor of Internal Medicine, Genetics and Molecular Biology and Pharmacology; Joel Picus, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine; Matthew Powell, MD, Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology; and Mark Watson, MD, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Pathology and Immunology. Drs. McLeod and Watson are scientific consultants for Orion Genomics.
"Two of the greatest opportunities in oncology today are to develop diagnostics that detect cancer earlier and to guide oncologists in the selection of effective therapies," said Dr. McLeod, who heads the pharmacogenomics lab at Washington University. "We are looking for specific molecular biomarkers that explain why patients with cancer respond differently to the same course of treatment. We are optimistic that tests based on these biomarkers will greatly impact clinical practice by enabling doctors to more accurately match therapies to patients."
"We are pleased to add Washington University School of Medicine's Siteman Cancer Center to our growing list of clinical collaborations," said Nathan Lakey, CEO and President of Orion Genomics. "The medical expertise of our collaborators will accelerate the preclinical validation of our pipeline of new oncology diagnostic tests."
About MethylScreen
Enabling the development of Orion's pipeline of new oncology diagnostics is MethylScreen Technology, a reliable enzyme-based real-time PCR technology that is compatible with testing platforms widely used in clinical laboratories today. The sensitivity of MethylScreen enables Orion's scientists to measure unique qualities of epigenetic DNA that are indicative of disease progressions. In addition, it allows for the development of oncology diagnostics that can not only diagnose for cancer but also provide critical clinical information on disease progression in the patient.
About DNA Methylation
Each cell in the body must store, express and copy an approximate 1-meter length of DNA, which is 200,000 times the width of the cell. An elaborate mechanism for packaging the DNA is required by the body to store it. DNA methylation is a chemical sequence found on the outside of DNA sequence, which enables storage of DNA. Genes that are not being used are methylated to be packaged very tightly so that they are unexpressed or effectively silent. By contrast, genes that are needed are not methylated. Their loose packaging allows them to be expressed and regulate the function of the cell. DNA methylation is stable, detectable, quantifiable and heritable. Because errors in DNA methylation accumulate with age, in fact, at a far greater rate than errors in the DNA sequence occur, it is a major factor in the presence of disease such as cancer.
About Orion Genomics
Orion Genomics is the Second Code(TM) biotechnology company developing oncology diagnostic products and generating revenue in a hybrid products- services model. Orion's various proprietary technologies, trademarked as GeneThresher, MethylScope, and MethylScreen, detect both normal and abnormal epigenetic patterns of genes and genomes and are used in various agricultural biotechnology and molecular diagnostic applications. Orion Genomics is located in the Center for Emerging Technologies in St. Louis. For more information, visit us at http://www.oriongenomics.com/ .
Orion Genomics
CONTACT: Nathan Lakey of Orion Genomics, LLC, +1-314-615-6977, Fax+1-314-615-6975, lakey@oriongenomics.com ; or, Amy Beltran, Ph.D. of Atkins +Associates for Orion Genomics, +1-858-527-3489, Fax +1-858-860-0270,abeltran@irpr.com
Web site: http://www.oriongenomics.com/
Source: PRNewswire
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