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Bio-Me, Siolta Therapeutics to Develop Microbiome-Based Pediatric Allergy and Asthma Test

NEW YORK ─ Bio-Me and Siolta Therapeutics on Monday announced that they have entered into a collaboration and marketing agreement to develop a rapid diagnostic test for newborns at risk of developing allergy and asthma later in life.

Siolta will provide samples and insights into key criteria to Bio-Me as part of the deal.

The test would also help San Carlos, California-based Siolta identify and monitor patients eligible for its biotherapeutic therapy currently under development, the firms said.

Financial and other terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Oslo, Norway-based Bio-Me, founded in 2016, has developed a Precision Microbiome Profiling (PMP) gut microbiome analysis platform in collaboration with Waltham, Massachusetts-based Thermo Fisher Scientific. PMP is based on a targeted approach to microbiome analysis that uses qPCR/TaqMan assays in an open array format.

The collaboration with Siolta provides access to "science into microbiome contributors to the development of allergy and asthma," Morten Isaksen, founder and CEO of Bio-Me, said in a statement.

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