Portland, Maine
January 29, 2008
EnviroLogix Inc.
(Portland, ME), a company developing rapid, on-site and
lab-based immunoassays for detecting transgenic proteins in
genetically modified seeds, plants and crops, and
Ionian Technologies Inc.
(San Diego, CA), a company developing proprietary rapid nucleic
acid assay technology, announced they will collaborate on the
development, manufacturing, marketing and sale of rapid tests
for detecting genes or gene sequences of interest to
agricultural biotechnology markets.
Under terms of their exclusive collaborative development
agreement, which includes future tests serving the
environmental, horticultural and food safety markets,
EnviroLogix will identify appropriate seed biotech partners and
gene targets, then market and sell products developed and
manufactured by Ionian to those companies for the “in field” or
“in house” detection of the gene sequences of interest.
Following a rapid sample extraction step, the technology
provides for the isothermal amplification of nucleic acids,
either DNA or RNA, in approximately 5 minutes, with PCR-quality
sensitivity. Even the fastest PCR reactions require ~30 minutes;
hence the technology provides a significant speed advantage
compared to PCR. The amplification products can be detected
using a variety of proprietary and standard methods, including
fluorescent and lateral-flow readouts.
Current tests for identifying engineered seeds, grains or crops
rely on detecting transgenic proteins with on-site immunostrips
(“lateral flow” tests) or lab-based ELISA methods, or PCR. But
PCR can be slow, and future biotech traits may not express novel
protein markers or express these proteins at levels too low for
immunoassays to detect. However, all current and future biotech
products have or will have different gene sequences compared to
non-engineered products, and thus the need for rapid – and
sensitive – nucleic acid testing. Ionian’s test methods are
sensitive enough to detect single base changes between two
otherwise similar sequences.
In addition to developing and selling rapid tests for GMOs,
EnviroLogix, founded in 1996, develops, manufactures, markets
and sells immunoassays for the detection of molds, mycotoxins,
algal toxins, pesticides, and plant pathogens.
Founded in 2000, Ionian Technologies is leveraging its strengths
in biodefense assay development to optimize and commercialize a
molecular diagnostic platform designed to perform a range of
analyses, from identifying infectious diseases to providing
point-of-care testing. |
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