NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Qiagen said today that its DxS subsidiary has licensed a biomarker from Johns Hopkins University that it plans to use to develop PCR-based companion diagnostic tests for cancer.
Studies have shown that the PI3K gene that Qiagen licensed has mutations that could serve as predictive biomarkers for the success of some treatments for patients with lung, breast, colorectal, and other cancers.
The patent for the PI3K was filed by Johns Hopkins researchers who were studying tyrosine kinase inhibitors that target the epidermal growth factor receptor pathway, which has been shown to be useful in treating some cancers.
Qiagen already has on the market a PCR-based test using PI3K that is used for research purposes. The firm said that it has a PI3K assay development and partnering program with pharmaceutical companies to develop and market companion diagnostic tests for cancer drug candidates.
Financial terms of the agreement were not released.