BioServe Unveils SNPlates(TM) For Economical Genetic Case-Control Studies - Ready-Made "Case-Control Studies On A Plate"

Main Category: Genetics
Also Included In: Clinical Trials / Drug Trials;  Biology / Biochemistry;  Public Health
Article Date: 04 Jun 2008 - 2:00 PDT

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BioServe introduced SNPlates, a product-line that promises to significantly reduce both the cost and complexity of how disease case-control studies are currently conducted. Leveraging BioServe's Global Repository(R) of human biological samples, SNPlates are comprised of DNA consisting of 180 cases and 180 matched controls in ready-made 96 and 384 well plate formats with comprehensive, de-identified covariate data such as age, gender, diet, body mass index (BMI) and race. SNPlates for diabetes, obesity, breast, colon, lung and prostate cancer are now available.

An early user of SNPlates, Dr. Yuichiro Tanaka, a prostate cancer investigator at the Urology Research Center, University of California, San Francisco, remarked, "BioServe's SNPlates provide great value by offering DNA with detailed clinical, demographic and environmental data for my research. BioServe was able to provide us with DNA from a cohort of prostate cancer patients that allowed us to further strengthen the link between hypermethylation, various polymorphisms and their relationship to prostate cancer. SNPlates provided me with the ideal set of cases and controls for my research."

A key challenge facing life science researchers is that conducting case-control studies is often a complex, time-consuming and expensive process. BioServe's SNPlates now offer research institutions of all types and sizes an effective, economical solution. "The application of richly annotated DNA samples to validate case-control studies have the potential to make the process of genetic marker validation easier and more cost-effective, and provide an exciting new alternative to how studies are today conducted," stated Kevin Krenitsky MD, Chief Executive Officer of BioServe.

Commenting on the future research role of SNPlates, Dr. Elaine Lanza, a well-known epidemiologist and President of Genomic Nanosystems, said, "Sound epidemiological studies take many years to conduct. BioServe's SNPlates provide great value by offering detailed demographic, family and medical history, along with DNA for genotyping. SNPlates have the potential to become very valuable tools for efficiently validating gene markers and their association with a variety of disease states such as cancer, obesity, diabetes and heart disease."

Kevin Krenitsky added, "BioServe has assembled a world class dataset that will allow researchers -- even those on a limited budget -- to take advantage of premium sample sets that were once the exclusive reserve of large budget research programs."

About BioServe

BioServe is a leader in the processing, development, and validation of diagnostic tests for the practice of personalized, predictive and preventive medicine. Leading pharma, biotech and diagnostic firms collaborate with BioServe to identify and validate markers that cause disease while correlating clinical and molecular data to develop new diagnostic tests, promoting wellness around the world. BioServe offers the Global Repository®, a growing library of over 600,000 human DNA, tissue and serum samples linked to detailed clinical and demographic data from 140,000 consented and de-identified patients from four continents. Leveraging BioServe's robust genomic analytical services, processing technology, Global Repository and CLIA-certified laboratory, collaborators gain a complete, highly-efficient platform for obtaining diagnostic test results and identifying genomic markers for powerful new assays. BioServe has headquarters in Beltsville, MD and Hyderabad, India.

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