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Co-Diagnostics Licenses CoPrimer PCR Tech to LGC Biosearch Technologies

NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) — Co-Diagnostics has agreed to exclusively license its CoPrimer PCR technology to LGC Biosearch Technologies for research and commercial applications in agriculture, the companies said today.

Specific terms of the deal were not disclosed.

CoPrimer technology uses a proprietary chemistry that attaches primers to probes with a polyethylene glycol-based linker. This method prevents the formation of primer-dimers, reducing them by as much as 2.5 million-fold, which in turn enables multiplexing, according to Salt Lake City-based Co-Diagnostics' published research. 

The companies said the license is the result of a joint development project to test CoPrimers in multiplexed reactions when locating specific genetic traits in seed products and genetic mutations, including SNP detection.

"As Biosearch Technologies clients begin to adopt our technology under the terms of this agreement, we look forward to offering our CoDX [primer] design services to help streamline and improve their operations, as well as to introducing them to further applications of CoPrimers to widen our customer base," Co-Diagnostics CEO Dwight Egan said in a statement. "Co-Diagnostics anticipates this to be the first of many CoPrimer technology license agreements."

LGC Biosearch Technologies — the genomics division of UK-based LGC Group — has been the sole manufacturer of CoPrimers since 2013. Under a 2015 agreement, LGC Biosearch Technologies has been able to market and sell CoPrimers to research institutions.

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