NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – ProGenTech has inked an alliance with Sydney, Australia-based Human Genetic Signatures to develop a line of molecular diagnostic assays for hospital-acquired infections.
Under the agreement, HGS will develop assays for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus, vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus, and Clostridium difficile. The assays will be integrated into ProGenTech’s Entura platform, which the company said reduces sample preparation time by preloading all reagents for RNA, DNA, and protein applications in a cassette.
ProGenTech said that it anticipates manual assays for the HAIs will be taken to the US Food and Drug Administration next year followed by fully integrated and automated tests in 2010. If the tests are cleared for marketing they will represent ProGenTech’s initial foray into the molecular diagnostics field.
The underpenetrated HAI market is being pursued by a variety of molecular diagnostics firms, who will compete with Cepheid and Becton Dickinson, the two firms that have already received US and European marketing clearance for a variety of HAI tests and plan to expand their test menus in this market.