ExonHit, bioMerieux collaborate on breast cancer detection using blood samples

By Lisa Kerner

Erie, Pa., March 29 - ExonHit Therapeutics and bioMérieux said their combined research efforts are focused on developing novel diagnostic tests for the early detection of breast cancer using blood samples.

Scientific data in support of the companies' research will be presented on April 4 at the 97th Annual American Association for Cancer Research meeting in Washington , D.C., according to a company news release.

The data show that the panel of genetic signatures identified by ExonHit can clearly distinguish healthy women from those with early stage breast cancer. Significant diagnostic markers have been identified using ExonHit's SpliceArray technology applied to Affymetrix GeneChip microarray platform, the release said.

As a result, a 54-gene signature was capable of correctly classifying 86.5% of the controls (32/37) and 92.7% of the breast cancer cases (51/55).

"These results provide a clear proof of concept that by using a well-characterized set of molecular markers in blood it can be possible to develop a valuable diagnostic test for breast cancer," ExonHit president Bruno Tocqué said in the release.

A prospective multi-center clinical study in 1,000 women is underway to validate the selectivity of the markers identified.

The ExonHit and bioMerieux collaboration in breast cancer diagnostics began in 2003 and was recently extended for an additional six years and includes additional cancers.

Under the agreement, ExonHit will receive research and development payments from bioMérieux, as well as milestone and royalty payments for diagnostic projects and product sales.

ExonHit is a drug and diagnostic discovery company based in Paris, France.

bioMérieux specializes in the field of in-vitro diagnostics for clinical and industrial applications. The company is located in Marcy l'Etoile, France.

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