NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Affymetrix and Signature Diagnostics today announced that they have inked an agreement under which Signature Dx has gained a worldwide license to use Affymetrix's microarray technology to develop and commercialize diagnostic and prognostic colorectal cancer tests.
Potsdam, Germany-based Signature Dx intends to launch two microarray-based IVD tests by the fourth quarter of this year for colorectal cancer, the firms said. Signature will first launch the tests in Europe and intends to seek US regulatory approval at an unspecified time in the future.
Signature has been developing the tests, called Detector C and Predictor C. Detector C is a non-invasive, blood-based early detection test that the firm said has shown 90 percent sensitivity and 88 percent specificity for all four stages of colorectal cancer. Predictor C is a tissue test that predicts disease progression in stage II and III colorectal cancer patients and has been shown to identify half of all stage II/III patients with a high risk of disease progression.
"Our novel Detector C blood screening product together with Affymetrix's gene expression array technology brings CRC screening to a new level of accuracy and sensitivity," André Rosenthal, CEO of Signature Diagnostics, said in a statement.
Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
The deal is part of Affy's 'Powered by Affymetrix's partnering program.