Dade Behring Grants Sublicense to Beckman Coulter for the Use of Cardiac Markers
Dade Behring Inc. (NASDAQ:DADE), the world’s largest company solely dedicated to clinical diagnostics, announced today that it has granted certain rights to Beckman Coulter for the combined use of the emerging cardiac markers placental growth factor (PIGF), soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1(sFlt-1), soluble CD40 ligand (sCD40L) and pregnancy associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A). In addition, Beckman Coulter has granted certain cardiac-related rights to Dade Behring for the use of PAPP-A. Studies show all of these cardiac markers to have potential to be useful in the diagnosis and prognosis of cardiovascular disease1-3, which remains the leading cause of death worldwide.
“As a global leader in cardiac testing, Dade Behring is highly focused on developing new tests that may lead to more successful cardiac patient management,” said Jim Reid-Anderson, Chairman, President and CEO, Dade Behring. “Sharing the rights to these emerging cardiac markers allows the new tests to become more widely available to the millions of patients with cardiovascular disease.”
About the role of PIGF, sFlt-1, sCD40L and PAPP-A in cardiovascular disease
In addition to these emerging cardiac markers having potential to be useful in the risk assessment, prognosis or diagnosis of cardiovascular disease, they may also provide independent, complementary information to routine cardiac markers such as Troponin I, NT-proBNP and high sensitivity C-reactive protein (CRP), among others.
PIGF is considered to be a marker, and PAPP-A is considered to be a potential marker, of atherosclerotic plaque instability2, 3. Both markers were originally identified in the placenta. PIGF has also been recognized as an independent and powerful predictor for adverse outcomes for patients with known or suspected acute coronary syndrome (ACS)2. ACS describes the continuum from unstable angina to myocardial infarction.
sCD40L has been proposed as a marker for primary risk assessment for cardiovascular disease. It has also been proposed for the identification of patients who benefit from glycoprotein IIb/IIIa receptor antagonist ReoPro® (abciximab) therapy, commonly used to prevent blood clots. Studies have shown that sCD40L is also an independent prognostic marker for ACS.
About Dade Behring
With 2006 revenue of more than $1.7 billion, Dade Behring is the world’s largest company solely dedicated to clinical diagnostics. It offers a wide range of products, systems and services designed to meet the day-to-day needs of clinical laboratories, delivering innovative solutions to customers and enhancing the quality of life for patients. Additional company information is available on the Internet at www.dadebehring.com.
References
1. Baldus, S., C. Heeschen, et al. (2003). “Myeloperoxidase patients with acute coronary syndromes.” Circulation 108 (12): 1440-5. 2. Heeschen, C., S. Dimmeler, et al. (2004). “Prognostic value of placental growth factor in patients with acute chest pain.” JAMA_291(4): 435-41. 3. Thorn, E.M. and I.A. Khan, (2007). “Pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A: An emerging cardiac biomarker.” Int J Cardiol, 117(3): 970-2.
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