Abbott and Promega to Develop Molecular Diagnostics Products

A collaboration to develop nucleic acid extraction products that will enable diagnostic laboratories to further automate testing for infectious diseases has been announced by Abbott Laboratories Abbott Park, IL, USA.

The collaboration will provide a highly sensitive, efficient system to purify and extract viral RNA from patient samples using Abbott's magnetic particle technology. Using this system, laboratorians can process up to 96 samples in only a few hours, speeding the testing for infectious diseases and the monitoring of patient therapy. The RNA extraction system will be used in Abbott's m1000, an automated sample preparation system for molecular diagnostics to be introduced in 2003. Under the terms of the agreement, the products will be manufactured by Promega and distributed by Abbott.

"We are pleased Abbott has selected Promega as its manufacturing partner for sample preparation technologies,” said Bill Linton, president and CEO of Promega. "Automation of sample preparation at low and high throughput is a key need for molecular diagnostics laboratories. This partnership will allow laboratories to fully automate viral load assays, saving time and allowing them to increase throughput.”

Promega provides solutions and technical support that enable scientists in the life sciences industry to advance their knowledge in genomics, proteomics and cellular analysis, molecular diagnostics, and human identification. Abbott is a broad-based healthcare company whose products include diagnostic tests and devices.




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