NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Alpharetta, Ga.-based ViveBio today announced it has signed an exclusive worldwide licensing agreement with Renovar for urine-based biomarkers that can be used to monitor kidney diseases and transplant rejections.
Renovar's biomarkers are based on unique inflammatory protein signatures found in the urine of diseased or injured kidneys. A multi-site clinical trial identified monokine induced by interferon-gamma (MIG) proteins and messenger RNA as clinically significant biomarkers. The researchers found that MIG protein was capable of identifying patients likely to have stable long-term kidney function, as well as patients who were unlikely to experience rejection or loss of kidney function over the next 18 months. The investigators noted that urinary MIG protein levels began to increase up to 30 days before clinical signs of kidney injury, ViveBio said in a statement.
ViveBio said the biomarkers could help clinicians assess kidney health, guide treatment decisions, and stratify patients for risk of developing acute organ rejection.
"This is an important step for ViveBio as the company evolves from a purely preanalytical player into a clinical diagnostics business," ViveBio President Timothy Murray said in a statement. "We plan to make a urine-based MIG protein assay available in 2016 either through a CLIA laboratory or one of the platforms we are evaluating." He added that the firm is preparing for additional clinical studies and exploring collaborations with pharmaceutical companies to employ the biomarkers as a companion diagnostic.
Financial and other details of the agreement were not disclosed.