NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Norwegian molecular diagnostics firm Genetic Analysis has tapped the Synlab Group and its subsidiary LaborDr. Bayer to offer its GA-map Dysbiosis Test to German laboratories and hospitals.
Genetic Analysis CEO Kari Stenersen in a statement called the deal a "commercial breakthrough" for the Oslo-based company, which achieved a CE-IVD mark for GA-map Dysbiosis last year.
"Germany, being the biggest market in Europe, will be of key importance for the broader European commercialization of our test," Stenersen said.
The GA-map assay targets dysbiosis, an imbalance of gut microbacteria that can lead to the development of irritable bowel disease and other gastrointestinal aliments. It consists of probes and primer sets for between 30 and 200 different bacterial species present in the gastrointestinal tract, and is performed using Applied BioCode's microarray platform. Based on the results, clinicians can distinguish patients with irritable bowel syndrome or IBD from those with other disorders.
Based in Augsburg, Germany, the Synlab Group is a leading European clinical laboratory service provider that operates in 23 countries. While the firm's distribution pact is exclusive for Germany, it retains a non-exclusive option for other markets in Europe and the Middle East.
Wolfgang Bayer, head of Labor Dr. Bayer, said in a statement that between 10 and 15 percent of the German population suffers from IBS. He noted that the agreement with Genetic Analysis enables his company to be the "first provider in the German market" of such a test and called GA-map Dysbiosis an "important addition to our test program."