GeneNews' Sentinel Principle® Used to Discover New Blood Based Biomarkers for Schizophrenia
TORONTO, CANADA (October 12, 2011):
GeneNews Limited (TSX:GEN), a company focused on developing blood-based biomarker tests for the early detection of diseases and personalized health management, today announced the publication of study data using GeneNews' proprietary Sentinel Principle® platform technology to identify complex changes in blood gene expression patterns that may be indicative of underlying risk factors for schizophrenia.
This study data is reported in a paper entitled, "Similarities and Differences in Peripheral Blood Gene-Expression Signatures of Individuals With Schizophrenia and Their First-Degree Biological Relatives" that will be published in the American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B and is currently available online. "This study shows that we can identify a gene signature associated with schizophrenia distinct from non-schizophrenia. The study is an important step towards identifying biomarkers for the early detection of this brain disorder," said Dr. Ming Tsuang, principal investigator for the reported study, Behavioral Genomics Endowed Chair and Director of the University of California, San Diego's Center for Behavioral Genomics, and Director of the Harvard Institute of Psychiatric Epidemiology and Genetics, Harvard School of Public Health.
"Discovering this gene expression signature also demonstrates one of the many applications of our proprietary platform technology, the Sentinel Principle®, which has already been used to identify biomarkers associated with a variety of diseases and conditions, including colorectal cancer, prostate cancer, liver cancer, bladder cancer, cardiovascular disease, osteoarthritis and Crohn's disease," said Gailina J. Liew, President and Chief Operating Officer of GeneNews.
The Sentinel Principle®, a platform technology discovered and developed by GeneNews, is based on the concept that all clinical conditions and body states, including those resulting from disease or in response to treatment, generate characteristic gene expression signatures in the blood as a result of the constant and dynamic physiological interaction of blood with the cells, tissues and organs of the human body. This technology is the basis of GeneNews' initial product, ColonSentryTM, the world's first blood test for colorectal cancer. ColonSentryTM was launched in Canada in 2008 and is poised to enter the U.S. market in the second half of 2011 through GeneNews' partnership with Enzo Clinical Labs. GeneNews' broad global patent portfolio includes issued foundational patents and pending patents in diverse disease areas such as cancer, cardiovascular, neurological and inflammatory conditions.
About GeneNews
GeneNews is an emerging molecular diagnostics company focused on the application of functional genomics to enable early diagnosis and personalized health management based on disease-specific biomarkers. The Company has a patented core platform technology, the Sentinel Principle®, which has the power to detect and stage virtually any disease or medical condition from a simple blood sample. For more information on GeneNews and ColonSentryTM, visit www.genenews.com or www.ColonSentry.com.
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