Rheonix, Inc., a developer of fully automated molecular testing solutions, and Life Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ: LIFE), a global leader in the life sciences tools and diagnostic markets, have entered into a joint development agreement to introduce a molecular testing platform for their Applied Markets business.
Technology developed by Rheonix for the molecular diagnostics market, including the Rheonix CARD®, a disposable cartridge the size of a credit card that can run multiple samples simultaneously without user intervention, will be supplied by Rheonix to Life Technologies for marketing, sales and distribution. The partnership will significantly shorten the time necessary for Rheonix to enter the clinical market with its sample-to-result molecular diagnostic instrument.
The instrument and consumable cartridges are components of a molecular detection system specifically designed for the food testing market that will enable laboratories to detect disease-causing organisms, including serotype identification, in a fully automated and highly efficient manner. The new platform is targeted for initial introduction in 2014.
"We are excited to work with the Applied Markets group based on their history as an innovative, high-growth unit within Life Technologies," said Tony Eisenhut, president of Rheonix. "This partnership will bring us closer to our goal of ensuring a safer food supply both domestically and around the globe."
The companies entered into the joint development agreement after a robust search and evaluation process by Life Technologies. Life Technologies selected Rheonix to streamline laboratory workflow and provide greater breadth of information per sample and offer a low cost of acquisition and operation.
For the clinical market, the walk-away Rheonix platform is fully automated and addresses the most difficult challenges facing the health care industry today, including workforce shortages, limited access to advanced molecular testing and escalating costs. Once a raw sample is placed on the Rheonix CARD, the automated platform runs with no user intervention through the process of sample extraction, DNA purification, amplification and detection. This eliminates the need for multiple pieces of existing equipment, helping make the testing process quicker, more efficient, less expensive and less likely to result in human error.
"This partnership is a great example of combining the consumable innovation of Rheonix with the molecular testing menu and hardware expertise of Life Technologies," said Eisenhut. "The fact that Life Technologies chose Rheonix validates the work we have done over the past decade to bring a molecular diagnostic platform forward that will help the industry address some of the major challenges in health care."
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