OMAHA, Neb., April 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Transgenomic,
Inc. (OTC/BB: TBIO) announced today that it has launched kits
for high sensitivity mutational analysis of the BRAF and
PIK3CA genes. These new kits complement the company’s
existing kits for detecting mutations in K-RAS, expanding
Transgenomic’s range of its proprietary SURVEYOR Scan mutation
detection kit product line. Mutations in all three genes
(K-RAS, BRAF, and PIK3CA) are widely accepted
to be correlated with a lack of response to the class of lung and
colorectal cancer drugs that are inhibitors of the epidermal growth
factor receptor (EGFR).
“An increasing number of studies of the BRAF and
PIK3CA genes have indicated that key mutations in these
genes can confer resistance to EGFR inhibitors such as cetuximab
(Erbitux®), gefitinib (IRESSA®), erlotinib (Tarceva®)
and to the tyrosine kinase inhibitor imatinib (Gleevec®),” said
Dr Katherine Richardson, VP of Research & Development at
Transgenomic. “There is a need to have sensitive, reliable, quick
and easy to use assays to test tumors for mutations in these genes.
Unlike assays that are allele-specific, requiring labs to run a
separate assay for every possible mutation, the SURVEYOR Scan kits
will detect all mutations in the amplified gene targets at levels
as low as 1% in a background of non-mutated DNA. The SURVEYOR Scan
BRAF and PIK3CA kits empower robust, sensitive
screening in research and diagnostic labs.”
In the near future, Transgenomic expects to release CE IVD
versions of the BRAF and PIK3CA kits for the European
diagnostics market and plans to expand the SURVEYOR Scan product
line with mutation detection kits for other key cancer pathway
genes that can be used with WAVE HS, automated microfluidics
platforms and even manually—a unique feature of
Transgenomic’s technology.
“Transgenomic has a stro
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