FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MADISON, WIS. – Officials at GenTel BioSurfaces, Inc. today announced the
launch of the PATHT Protein Microarray Kit. The new product will make its
international debut at the annual Chips To Hits Biotechnology Conference in
Boston, September 19-23.
“We have beta tested the PATH slide in research labs across the country with
extraordinary success,” said Alex Vodenlich, GenTel’s president and CEO. “In
research applications from biomarker discovery to protein profiling, the
slide performed as promised, outpacing its competitors in nearly every
benchmark.”
The new protein microarray slide features a proprietary, non-porous,
ultra-thin nitrocellulose film that covers a large portion of the slide.
“Ultra-thin nitrocellulose films provide all the benefits of conventional
nitrocellulose-based microarray technologies, but lack the problematic
background noise normally associated with them,” Vodenlich said. In
addition, the PATH configuration means a single slide is compatible with
almost any type of multiplexing device, including separators, gaskets, or
high-throughput adaptors, he said. Multiplexing technology allows
researchers to test numerous samples simultaneously, saving precious sample
and decreasing research time.
Currently, protein biochip use is largely limited to assay development in
research laboratories. “PATH technology will help scientists move beyond
basic research to drug discovery and development, and diagnostics,”
Vodenlich said.
Early response from the scientific community has GenTel readying for orders
at and following the product’s international debut in Boston, “Our
sales-to-date have been encouraging. We’re eager to make the product
available to an international target audience,” he said.
Biochip consumers include academic and industrial research laboratories that
are using the technology to diagnose and manage disease, and for new drug
development. The total biochip market is predicted to exceed $1 billion by
the end of 2005, with a compound annual growth rate of greater than 70
percent, according to a 2003 report published by BioInsights.
The PATH technology was developed by Clinical MicroArrays, Inc. of Natick,
Mass., and is licensed to GenTel BioSurfaces. It is the first of several
products that the firm plans to release within the coming months, and is the
company’s second product launch.
More information about GenTel BioSurfaces, Inc. can be obtained at
www.gentelbio.com or by contacting: Alex D. Vodenlich, president and CEO at
608-217-5587; alex@gentelbio.com, or Sarah Botham, Front Porch
Communications at 608-924-2625, sfbotham@mhtc.net.
