British diagnostics service firmLab21 said this week that it has signed a deal to collaborate with diagnostics developer IntegraGen to develop a microRNA-based assay for colorectal cancer.
According to Lab21, it will use its proprietary PCR technology to develop an assay that can detect hsa-miR-31-3p, which is believed to predict response to EGFR inhibitor therapy, such as Erbitux, in KRAS wild-type patients with metastatic colorectal cancer.
The approximately 40 percent of colorectal cancer patients who carry the mutation are not good candidates for EGFR inhibitors.
Specific terms of the arrangement were not disclosed.
IntegraGen CEO Bernard Courtieu said in a statement that the assay could be ready for commercialization in Europe by early 2014.