NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Diversigen announced today that it has formed a partnership with Baylor Miraca Genetics Laboratory (BMGL) to provide their customers with access to their respective targeted genomics and metabolomics services.
BMGL is a joint venture between the Baylor College of Medicine and Tokyo-based diagnostics firm Miraca Holdings that was established in 2014 to provide clinical genetics testing services. Diversigen, formerly Metanome, was established by Baylor venture capital arm BCM Technologies in 2013 to provide microbiome and metagenomics consulting, sequencing, and analysis services.
Under the terms of their arrangement, Diversigen and Baylor Miraca will provide their customers with access to the services of the other for studying host-microbiome relationships.
"Our pharmaceutical customers have expressed an interest in correlating microbiome data with specific host genetic traits to better understand the host-microbiome relationship as a factor in disease and in the search for more effective therapies," Diversigen President Cynthia Sheridan said in a statement. "This partnership with BMGL will allow us to provide broader services resulting in deeper insights into human health and disease."
"As we continue to transition from an academically centered genetic laboratory to a commercial organization focused on advancing patient health, access to the expert microbiome resources of the Diversigen team makes perfect sense," BMGL President and CEO Gary Huff added in the statement.
Specific terms of the deal were not disclosed.