Exonhit Therapeutics Granted News Patent in Microarray Market
ExonHit Therapeutics announced the grant of a major patent (No US #6,881,571) on microarray products allowing the specific detection of mRNAs produced by alternative splicing, covering microarrays optimised for the discovery of alternative RNA splicing events. The patent protects the probe configuration of a unique set of five oligonucleotides for the detection of each splice variant. There are many applications for this patent, including drug discovery, diagnostics, and compound screenings for efficacy or toxicity as well as screening patients for potential efficacy of therapeutics.
Alternative RNA Splicing is a critical step in the expression of most genes, which can result in the expression of several mRNAs encoding proteins with different functions from a single gene. Splicing events are implicated in numerous pathologies and can be altered by various stress events such as virus, toxic agents, and drug exposure.
The genome-wide patented probe configuration described in the patent is the basis for the microarrays in ExonHit's SpliceArray product line launched earlier this year. The genome profiling market is rapidly growing, and SpliceArrays are the only commercially available microarrays designed to detect alternative splicing. Current SpliceArray products include GPCR, Ion Channel, and Nuclear Receptor family SpliceArrays, as well as custom design services. An Apoptosis and Cytokine gene family array will be launched in the coming months. SpliceArrays are manufactured for ExonHit by Agilent Technologies.
"The granting of this patent reinforces our leadership in the field of expression profiling and positions ExonHit as the only partner for the conception or use of gene profiling microarrays that include alternative RNA splicing", stated Bruno Tocqué, President and CEO, ExonHit Therapeutics. "This is significant for ExonHit as we have been successful in leveraging strategic assets in multiple arenas, including the therapeutic, diagnostic and research tool markets - areas in which these claims will further increase our market share."
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