OmniGene Inc said it is looking for corporate partners todevelop its technology for the diagnosis of infectious diseasesand other diagnostic applications.

The Cambridge, Mass., company, which was spun off to amanagement group by BioTechnica International in January1991, declined to provide details of the technology. OmniGenesaid the test can be used to diagnose viral and bacterialdisease, to detect allergy-causing substances, and to monitorlevels of medication in the blood.

Keith Backman, vice president of R&D, said he expects thetechnology to provide the sensitivity of nucleic acid-basedprobes, such as those using PCR, in an immunoassay formatthat can test simultaneously for several organisms.

OmniGene will likely target the blood banking and sexuallytransmitted disease testing markets. Panels that can test formultiple organisms are useful in both markets, Backman said. -- KB

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