DxNA has acquired exclusive rights to run PathoGene's multiplexed Staphylococcus MRSA+ assay on DxNA's real-time PCR-based GeneStat platform, the companies said this week.
Specifically, St. George, Utah-based DxNA will combine PathoGene's assay with its own master mix chemistry in a cartridge format for use on the GeneStat system, DxNA CEO David Taus told PCR Insider.
PathoGene's Staphylococcus MRSA+ assay simultaneously identifies and differentiates three of the most common pathogens of hospital-acquired, surgical site, medical device, and skin and soft tissue infections, in about an hour. The companies noted that the test is different from current commercially available assays for methicillin-resistant S. aureus because it includes multi-drug-resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococcus strains, which are much more common infections than MRSA.
Meantime, DxNA's GeneStat platform is a cartridge-based system for performing DNA- and/or RNA-based multiplexed real-time PCR assays to detect infectious disease agents in humans and animals, and to detect biological contaminants in the environment. The company said that the system accepts a number of sample types and can be run with minimal training in either laboratory or field settings.
"PathoGene's novel approach with this Staph assay provides rapid clinical answers … making [it] an ideal complement to our GeneStat platform," Taus said in a statement.
In 2009, DxNA's GeneStat 2009 H1N1 influenza virus was granted emergency use authorization by the US Food and Drug Administration (PCR Insider, 12/17/2009).
PathoGene, based in Flagstaff, Ariz., is a 2008 spinout of the Translational Genomics Institute and Northern Arizona University. The company was founded to develop PCR-based assays for difficult-to-treat and drug-resistant infectious diseases (PCR Insider, 8/19/2010).