Licensing option pacts cover 200 genes linked to breast and colon cancers as well as IP linked to ongoing studies in six other cancers.
Beckman Coulter gained exclusive options to license cancer genomics intellectual property from Johns Hopkins University through two agreements.
The first deal covers 200 genes linked to breast and colon cancer discovered by researchers at Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center. Beckman Coulter’s wholly owned subsidiary, Agencourt, performed the sequencing for this study through its Genomic Services segment.
The second pact is related to sequencing services and options to license genomic intellectual property from current studies on six additional cancers.
“These unprecedented agreements put Beckman Coulter in a unique, leading-edge position in the molecular diagnostics field,” comments Bruce Wallace, vp of the company’s Molecular Diagnostics Business Center. “Beckman Coulter will have the exclusive option to license any of the genetic mutations discovered in these studies that have diagnostic potential.”
To develop a robust molecular diagnostics business, Wallace says, “We are already in the process of moving our research genomics technologies into platforms for diagnostic use. Building content, or approved tests for that platform, from research such as the John Hopkins cancer genomics studies, will enhance our success.”
