NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) - Beckman Coulter has started a research collaboration with Thomas Jefferson University of Philadelphia and the Laboraf Diagnostica e Ricerca San Raffaele in Milan, Italy, aimed at researching genetic signatures for cardiovascular disease and obesity-related hypertension.
Under the collaboration, the universities and the company will use the company's Biomek FXP Laboratory Automation Workstation and GenomeLab SNPStream Genotyping System to develop research protocols and assays. Beckman Coulter will have the right to exclusively license commercial applications that result from the collaboration.
Beckman intends to use the genetic signatures discovered in the alliance to develop content for its next-generation molecular diagnostics platform, which it plans to launch in 2010.
“The discovery of genetic factors for both CVD and obesity may lead to development of readily-accessible diagnostic tests that enable more rapid assessment, earlier treatment, and preventive measures,” Bruce Wallace, president of Beckman Coulter’s molecular diagnostics business center, said in a statement.