In separate announcements on Wednesday, Biomerica Inc. andMeridian Diagnostics Inc. said they would begin marketingdiagnostic blood tests to detect Helicobactor pylori, abacterium that has been linked to duodenal ulcers, stomachcancer and other gastric ailments.

Current methods of detecting the bacterium include cultureand histological examinations of biopsy tissue taken from thestomach, and a radioactive urease test. These methods havehampered large-scale screening programs. By age 19, about 10percent of the U.S. population is infected. That number rises toup to 60 percent by age 60.

H. pylori can be treated with anti-microbial therapies.

Biomerica's test, which relies on trade secrets rather thanpatent protection, detects an antibody specific to gamma Gimmunoglobulin for H. pylori. The Newport Beach, Calif.,company (NASDAQ:BMRA) hasn't yet decided whether it willmarket the test in the United States or seek a majordistributor, said Joseph Irani, Biomerica's president.

Cincinnati-based Meridian (NASDAQ:KITS) licensed an H. pyloriblood serum test from E-Z-EM Inc. of Westbury, N.Y. That testalso detects antibodies to H. pylori, using a patented antigenthat was developed at the Baylor College of Medicine andlicensed exclusively to E-Z-EM.

Meridian will make a small up-front payment to E-Z-EM,followed by sales royalties. Meridian has exclusive U.S. rightsand non-exclusive worldwide rights to sell the test.

Irani told BioWorld he hadn't known of E-Z-EM's test andcouldn't comment on differences between the tests. Officialsat E-Z-EM were unavailable for comment. -- Karen Bernstein

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