Her-2, EGFR, and TOP2A tissue sample tests will be marketed in China by CMED.

China Medical Technologies (CMED) and Leica Biosystems established a research, development, and sales collaboration to co-develop and market automated fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) kits for use on the Leica Bond system. Under terms of the deal, CMED will sell the kits in China, and Leica will have a sales option for the rest of the world.

The firms will work together to develop automated FISH solutions for Her-2, EGFR, and TOP2A tissue sample tests on the Leica Bond automated staining platform. Their agreement covers the development of additional FISH kits for fields including cytology and prenatal applications.

CMED and Leica claim automation of FISH tests on the Leica Bond will provide laboratories with the means to run the diagnostics more efficiently and reproducibly, and at higher test volumes. “We believe that FISH applications will be more widely used in various clinical applications on an automated basis in the future,” comments Xiaodong Wu, chairman and CEO at CMED. “By partnering with Leica, we can provide more efficient and higher quality FISH diagnostic solutions to the end users not only in China, but also in the global markets.”

CMED specializes in the development, manufacture, and marketing of in vitro diagnostics for disease detection and monitoring, using enhanced chemiluminescence immunoassay (ECLIA), FISH, and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) technologies. The firm’s first ECLIA analyzers and reagents were launched in 2004.

Its FISH and SPR operations are carried out by the wholly owned subsidiary, Beijing GP Medical Technologies, which was established in 2006. CMED acquired its FISH business in 2007, and the SPR business in 2008.

In June Beijing GP inked a strategic collaboration agreement with Gaoxin Da An Healthcare Investment Lt, to co-market and promote molecular diagnostic technologies for clinical diagnostic applications in China.

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