NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – The lawsuit filed by the Regents of the University of California against Roger Chen and Genia Technologies was dismissed on July 18, following a settlement between the parties. The suit was originally filed in late 2016 and claimed that patents assigned to Genia resulted from work Chen performed while employed at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Oxford Nanopore Technologies said in June that it was assuming certain costs of the litigation and that the parties had agreed on the terms of a settlement. Roche, which owns Genia, said this week it is "pleased" that the parties have settled, adding that the terms of the agreement are confidential. Oxford Nanopore Technologies declined to comment.
In a note to investors this week, investment bank William Blair said it is suspending its coverage of Bio-Techne, Bruker, Genomic Health, Illumina, Myriad Genetics, Pacific Biosciences, and Waters after the departure of its analyst.
HTG Molecular Diagnostics said this week it has entered into an amendment to the third statement of work under its master assay agreement with Qiagen Manchester. Initial assay development activities under the third statement of work are complete and the amendment relates to the development of an investigational-use-only assay, retrospective testing of clinical trial samples, design verification, and potential regulatory submissions in the US and EU to market a companion diagnostic for a corresponding drug.
In August HTG amended an agreement with Qiagen Manchester related to the potential development and commercialization of an NGS-based CDx in support of one or more drug development programs at Bristol-Myers Squibb. It is unclear if this week's announcement pertains to that drugmaker's programs.
ACT Genomics said this week it has completed a round of equity financing from a group of international investors that was co-led by CLSA Capital Partners. The company did not disclose the size of the funding round. The new funding will support ACT's plan to expand its business across Asia, including opening additional CAP-accredited NGS laboratories in Hong Kong, commencing new product R&D, expanding clinical services in Asia, and collaborating on drug development with biopharmaceutical partners. ACT currently has operations in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Japan and has a joint venture with Canon Medical System in Japan.
Flow cytometry solutions firm Cytek Biosciences said this week it completed a Series C funding round co-led by Northern Lights Ventures and 3E Bioventures. The financing will go toward expanding the Fremont, California-based firm's global footprint, ramping up sales, marketing, and operations, and global product offerings. Cytek did not disclose the amount it raised in the funding round.
Predicine said this week it received accreditation from the College of American Pathologists for its genomic sequencing lab in Shanghai. The Hayward, California-based firm offers genomic profiling assays, including the GeneRadar liquid biopsy technology to detect genetic cancer variants in circulation using blood or urine samples.
Sophia Genetics said this week it has opened US headquarters in Boston to respond to what the Swiss company called "burgeoning demand" from North American hospitals. Sophia plans to expand its US workforce from 20 to 50 within the next 12 months.
In Brief This Week is a selection of news items that may be of interest to our readers but had not previously appeared on GenomeWeb.