A Diagnostics & Imaging Week

Three Japanese companies – Daiichi Pure Chemicals, Toshiba and Toshiba Hokuto Electronics – have agreed to work together to promote in vitro DNA chip-based diagnostics, starting with diagnosis of the human papilloma virus (HPV).

Under an agreement reported recently in Tokyo, the three companies will direct Toshiba's capabilities in DNA chips and electrochemical DNA detection and analysis, and Daiichi Pure Chemicals' know-how in in vitro diagnosis toward further advances in DNA-based diagnostic systems.

DNA-based diagnosis gives care providers the potential to identify the presence or absence of specific strains of a virus in an individual, and to develop treatment regimes best suited to patients' DNA profiles.

Daiichi Pure Chemicals and Toshiba have collaborated in the development of a diagnostic system based on an electrochemical DNA detection chip since January 2004 and are now ready to make the transition to real-world application.

Toshiba Hokuto Electronics has supported development and prototype production and will take responsibility for manufacturing the commercialized DNA chip and detection system.

The new agreement among the companies further promotes that goal by defining the role of the three partners and selecting HPV as the first target application. Infection with HPV is the main cause of cervical cancer, the second-most-common cancer in women.

Daiichi Pure Chemicals, Toshiba and Toshiba Hokuto Electronics are focused on developing Japan's first in vitro diagnostic system for HPV based on an electrochemical DNA detection chip.

The companies noted that the main direction in DNA chip development previously focused on fluorescence detection technology that used a laser to irradiate a sample and then measures the resulting fluorescence. "Since the equipment is large and not easily portable, and the chip and screening process are both expensive, fluorescence detection is impractical for real-world application outside the research lab," they said in their announcement of the collaboration.

The in vitro electrochemical detection methodology being developed by Toshiba allows for detection of DNA without the use of fluorescent or other labels and offers what the collaborators term "much easier operation and shorter analysis time than currently available methodologies."

The equipment required also is much more compact and integrate with IT technologies, and more cost efficient, they said.

New HQ and UK office for Corgenix

Corgenix Medical (Denver), a developer of diagnostic test kits, has relocated its international business office in the UK, as well as its headquarters and manufacturing facility, to meet expected worldwide growth in its sales of diagnostic products.

The new 32,000-square-foot Denver headquarters is more than double the size of the the previous combined sites. The new building houses corporate headquarters and administration, research and product development, quality and regulatory affairs management, manufacturing and North American sales and marketing management.

The UK office manages Corgenix's international distribution network and serves as a distribution center for company products sold throughout Europe and the Middle East.

"This expansion and relocation is a significant strategic move for our company, signifying our expectation for greatly increased sales of our diagnostic products worldwide," said Douglass Simpson, Corgenix president and CEO. "Our existing U.S. and international offices were constraining our ability to grow, and these changes directly address this problem."

Corgenix is a manufacturer of specialized diagnostic kits for immunology disorders, vascular diseases, and bone and joint disorders.

Nasdaq Global Select listing for Qiagen

Qiagen (Venlo, the Netherlands) reported that it has been included in the new Nasdaq Global Select Market, which the company said is reported to have the highest initial listing standards of any exchange in the world based on financial and liquidity requirements.

Prior to the change, which occurred early this month, Qiagen's shares had been listed on the Nasdaq National Market. Its shares continue to be traded under the ticker QGEN.

Qiagen, a global provider of pre-analytical sample preparation products enabling genetic and protein analysis, also is listed on the Prime Segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.