COURTAGEN TO PARTNER WITH TETRACORE IN BIODEFENSE INITIATIVE
Partners to Develop Quantitative Point-of-Care Surveillance and Detection Assay for High Threat Biological Agents and Infectious Diseases
WOBURN, Mass., February 09, 2012 -- Courtagen Life Sciences, Inc. ("Courtagen"), a privately held life sciences company that provides innovative proteomic and genomic products and services to the life sciences industry, today announced that it has entered into a strategic collaboration with Tetracore, Inc. ("Tetracore") to develop a next generation biothreat assay foridentifying and diagnosing high priority biological agents in clinical and environmental samples. Some of the target agents include those which cause significant diseases such as anthrax and plague, as well as dangerous toxins such as ricin and botulinum. The combined effort will focus on addressing the critical need to quickly and accurately identify the pathogen while also quantifying the magnitude of the potential threat.
The collaboration provides validation of the Courtagen protein diagnostic technology by a recognized leader in diagnostic reagents and assays for infectious diseases and biological warfare threat agents. Together the two companies will pursue a first in class solution that could enable the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and other Federal biodefense programs to achieve their goal of developing biothreat point-of-care diagnostic countermeasures.
"The unmatched sensitivity, accuracy and ease of use of Courtagen's Avantra® Q400 Protein Biomarker Technology combined with Tetracore's biothreat assay expertise will for the first time enable the creation of rapid diagnostic medical countermeasures in the field," said Brendan McKernan, President of Courtagen Life Sciences. "The outcomes of this partnership have the potential to make a significant impact on biodefense, public health and drug development initiatives."
"This collaboration is a much welcomed opportunity and is on track to produce a powerful solution for point-of-care detection of some of the world's most dangerous agents," said Tom O'Brien, Ph.D., Vice President of Tetracore. "Courtagen's unique multiplex detection technology is an ideal platform to leverage our experience and high quality reagents."
About Courtagen Protein Diagnostics
Courtagen has developed a next-generation, POC protein biomarker technology, called the Avantra® Q400 Biomarker Workstation and QPDx® BioChip. This technology is ideal for users who operate in a decentralized environment and require on-demand testing of biomarkers. The protein diagnostics technology provides users with an integrated system that automates sample processing, reagent handling, biomarker detection and analysis. This unmatched simplicity minimizes user error and affords precision with limited operator training.
About Tetracore, Inc.
Tetracore is a biotechnology research and development organization that develops highly innovative diagnostic reagents and assays for infectious diseases and biological warfare (BW) threat agents. The company focuses on antibody-based and nucleic acid-based detection reagents and technologies. Tetracore offers a broad range of highly-specific, rapid, antibodybased test kits and antibody reagents for the detection of BW infectious agents and toxins, including the first FDA-cleared test kit for identification of B. anthracis from colonies. Tetracore also offers a product line of real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test kits for sensitive and specific detection of animal pathogens. In addition, Tetracore contracts with the US Government for development of diagnostic tests for BW agents, novel nucleic acid extraction procedures, and specialized nucleic acid products. More information can be found at www.tetracore.com.
About Courtagen Life Sciences, Inc.Courtagen Life Sciences is a privately held life science company that provides innovative proteomic and genomic products and services to the Life Sciences industry. Founded by innovators in next-generation sequencing (NGS), genetics, molecular biology, and information science, our company delivers tools that enable researchers and clinicians to make better decisions regarding drug development and patient care. Courtagen provides proteomic and
genomic solutions through its various operating divisions. More information can be found at www.courtagen.com.