NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Cancer diagnostics firm Helomics today announced the formation of the UK's Genomics Expert Network for Enterprises (GENE) consortium.
Helomics is partnering with Genomics England in the creation of GENE and is the only diagnostics firm in the consortium, of which the Pittsburgh-based company is a founding member. GENE was formed to support the UK's 100,000 Genomes Project and includes pharmaceutical and biotech firms AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Biogen, Dimension Therapeutics, GlaxoSmithKline, Roche, Takeda Pharmaceuticals, and UCB.
Helomics will collaborate with the other GENE members on a year-long industry trial to discover new insights and approaches to improve patient outcomes, it said. It will provide its expertise and live-cell tumor profiling technology called Precision Cellular Analytical Platform to identify new biomarkers that could be used to develop advanced cancer diagnostic tests and inform the development of therapeutics.
Formerly called Precision Therapeutics, the company changed its name to Helomics last fall, following a $60 million investment, the appointment of a new management team and board, and a reorientation of its technologies.