Licenses cover screening through digital analysis, diagnosis by sequencing, and use of digital PCR in prenatal diagnosis.
Fluidigm obtained coexclusive licenses to Stanford University inventions that identify fetal genetic characteristics in maternal plasma. This includes the combination of digital PCR and high-throughput sequencing.
The licenses specifically cover Stanford University inventions relating to noninvasive fetal genetic screening by digital analysis, noninvasive diagnosis of fetal aneuploidy by sequencing, and digital PCR enabling rapid prenatal diagnosis of fetal aneuploidy.
These licenses include a technique reported by a group of Stanford researchers in October that counted chromosomes by finding trace amounts of fetal DNA in a pregnant woman’s blood. Because small amounts of fetal DNA are present in maternal blood quite early in pregnancy, researchers believe this technique can provide a much earlier and safer diagnosis for fetal aneuploidy than is now available.
