Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN) is the world's most widely read biotech publication. It provides the R&D; community with critical information on the tools, technologies, and trends that drive the biotech industry.
Issue link: http://gen.epubxp.com/i/350894
Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News | GENengnews.com | AUGUST 2014 | 11 and an adapter complimentary primer on the other end, thus enriching novel and unchar- acterized sequences. Complex mutations, therefore, are identifed with one assay. Archer focuses on carcinomas, hemato- logical malignancies, and sarcomas and is very scalable. It looks at hundreds of genes, "and has the potential to look at thousands of genes simultaneously," Dr. Myers says. The current products, however, focus on areas of actionable information and are, hence, panels that can be used to detect and identify those genes most closely associated with cancers. "It displaces FISH, IHC, and some PCR procedures as well as its NGS predecessors," Dr. Myers notes. For example, where FISH detects gene fusions, AMP detects and also identifes those fusions. "Archer often is an order of magnitude faster than comparable products, and it's about 30 times less expen- sive than traditional assays." Additionally, as early adopters are see- ing, "AMP is quickly scalable," asserts Ian Ratcliffe, CEO and chairman of the board. "We can turn around custom gene panels in weeks, rather than months." Released in February, adoption of Ar- cher technology is advancing rapidly. "It's an important part of precision medicine," Picone says. Several of the top cancer centers in the United States are actively developing assays around AMP, and many others also are implementing Archer technology in their research. According to Dr. Myers, pharma- ceutical companies also are using Archer to identify biomarkers for companion diagnos- tics and to discover mutations in cancer. Enzymatics' frst assay kit for Archer was introduced spring 2014 to detect ALK, RET, and ROS1 fusions. These mutations are in- volved in non-small cell lung carcinoma and can be identifed with as little as 20 ng of nucleic acid. An assay kit for mixed lineage leukemia has also been developed, and Dr. Myers says he expects four other assay kits to be launched by year's end. Strategic Growth Currently, Archer technology is avail- able for research use only. Enzymatics plans to expand the Archer platform into addi- tional markets, initially focusing on translo- cations—suitable targets, Picone maintains, because they pose "some of the most chal- lenging problems in oncology." The company also plans to extend this target-enrichment platform to other markets, including germ line and infectious disease, while new Archer versions will continue to simplify workfow to reduce complexity and increase effciency. During the coming year, Enzymatics' focus will expand beyond translocations to also ad- dress other cancer-related mutations. As Dr. Myers points out, "Pathologists want an as- say that looks at all the mutations—point mu- tations, copy number variations, and translo- cations—simply and simultaneously." "Enzymatics is ideally positioned to iden- tify new enzymes and sequencing-based tech- nologies to add to our portfolio," Ratcliffe insists. "Archer is a case study of the com- pany's ability to identify and accelerate great technologies into the market. We will con- tinue to deliver world-class products and cus- tomer support through our reagent and kit- ting businesses, while continually evaluating strategic opportunities for growth. There's a lot of opportunity ahead to build a substan- tial, versatile life science company that serves the research and applied markets." The QX200 ™ AutoDG ™ Droplet Digital ™ PCR system is here. Bio-Rad's Droplet Digital PCR (ddPCR ™ ) systems gave scientists the power to unveil new discoveries through precise and absolute nucleic acid quantication. The new automated droplet generator simplies the ddPCR workow, making digital PCR both scalable and practical. Automated droplet generation minimizes hands-on time, eliminates user-to-user variability, and makes every droplet count. Learn more at bio-rad.com/info/ddPCRsimplifed In a complicated world, the future just got simpler. CORPORATE PROFILE Enzymatics Location 100 Cummings Center, Suite 407J Beverly, MA 01915 Phone (978) 927-7027 Website www.enzymatics.com Principal Ian Ratclie CEO and chairman of the board Number of Employees 125 Focus Enzymatics is a developer and man- ufacturer of application- and NGS- focused kits for Archer™ Anchored Multiplex PCR technology, as well as the underpinning reagents, assays, and software. Vital Signs