Akkadix Corporation, an international agricultural gene discovery and functional genomics company, announced today that it used Menagerie™ and ProteomeBank™, its proprietary software and database respectively, to identify novel protein functions in the cholera pathogen, Vibrio cholerae, and in Xylella fastidiosa, the cause of citrus variegated chlorosis. The Menagerie™ software and ProteomeBank™ database were developed under the Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant of more than $800,000, awarded to Akkadix in August 1999, for a two-year period by the National Institute for General Medical Sciences at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Complete sequencing of the genomes (the total DNA) of V. cholerae and X. fastidiosa was announced recently by two independent research teams. In each of the two genomes, the functions of more than 1500 of the putative genes identified in these sequences were not known. Using the proprietary and completely automated methodology incorporated into Menagerie and ProteomeBank, Akkadix was able to predict the biochemical function for more than 600 of these genes. Partial results of this analysis will be provided upon request. Please call Arthur J. Chatroo, Executive Vice President, at 858 646-8279.

With these two bioinformatics tools, Akkadix now has a powerful automated system for the rapid prediction of gene and protein functions from the massive amount of information that is being generated in large-scale DNA sequencing programs. Knowledge of the function of a protein (and its associated gene) is a critical component for the translation of gene sequence information into gene utility information. Knowledge of specific gene utility is a necessary prerequisite for both (i) obtaining patent protection (under interim and proposed final U.S. Patent Office rules) and (ii) developing new or improved products.

Predicting protein function from DNA and/or amino acid sequences in a completely automated fashion is a challenging step, but an important one for the future of agricultural genomics. "Menagerie and ProteomeBank are powerful large-scale analysis tools that allow Akkadix to understand the evolutionary and functional relationships between the large numbers of proteins produced by a genome," says Leo Kim, Chief Technical Officer of Akkadix.

"Our results in important genomes of human and plant pathogens such as Vibrio cholerae and Xylella fastidiosa, demonstrate that these tools will help Akkadix and its potential corporate partners in the development of new plant disease control and other technologies for the agricultural industry," adds Kim.

Xylella fastidiosa causes a range of economically important plant diseases, including citrus variegated chlorosis, Pierce’s disease of grapevine, alfalfa dwarf and phony peach disease and is also associated with diseases in pear, almond, elm oak, pecan and coffee.

Cholera is a disease generally spread by contaminated water supplies causing thousands of fatalities worldwide each year.

Earlier this month, Akkadix announced the acquisition of a license to Pangene Corporation’s patent estate of enhanced Homologous Recombination (eHR) and other related technologies for commercial use in the plant science field. The license is exclusive for homology driven DNA modification and rearrangement with certain field of use restrictions, and non-exclusive for DNA cloning. These licensed technologies significantly augment Akkadix’s own activities in this area. The application of homologous recombination to agriculture is revolutionary in nature and will enable rapid and precise gene recombination, gene isolation, gene rearrangement and gene sequence insertions, deletions or replacements. Akkadix’s homologous recombination based Genome Enhancement Methods (Precise™ GEMs) enable the accelerated evolution of plants by precision engineering to produce higher quality food and fiber (and other plant output traits) more efficiently.

Akkadix Corporation is a global agricultural biotechnology company using gene discovery, functional genomics, bioinformatics, homologous recombination, plant breeding and other technologies for the discovery and delivery of novel plant traits which improve health and safety, increase production, lower costs, help preserve the environment and create new opportunities for clearly defined agricultural products.

Equity funding for Akkadix Corporation has come from venture capital investments by Bay City Capital Fund I, L.P., North American Nutrition and Agribusiness Fund, L.P. (which is also managed by Bay City Capital, LLC.), and the Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council. Corporate shareholders include Axys Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Forage Genetics, Inc. and Pangene Corporation. For more information about Akkadix, visit Akkadix’s web site at http://www.akkadix.com.