Wednesday October 11, 8:03 am Eastern Time
Press Release
SOURCE: Clinical Micro Sensors
Motorola's Clinical Micro Sensors Division Receives
Five Key U.S. Patents; Coverage is Central to Company's DNA Detection
Business
PASADENA, Calif., Oct. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Clinical Micro Sensors (CMS), a division of Motorola, Inc., (NYSE: MOT -
news), announced today that the company had received five strategically important patents covering novel bioelectronic
detection technologies from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The CMS eSensor(TM) system consists of disposable
biochip cartridges, proprietary software and electronic readers, well suited to the emerging market for user-friendly, rapid, and
cost effective DNA tests in a wide range of markets.
The five patents, U.S. Patent Nos. 6,063,573; 6,071,699; 6,087,100; 6,090,933; and 6,096,273 cover methods and
compositions for detecting nucleic acids, including methods of modifying electrodes with electronically linked oligonucleotides
and methods and compositions for bioelectronic detection employing the cycling probe technology. Together, they extend the
company's patent portfolio to 15 owned or licensed U.S. patents and over 40 U.S. patents pending with foreign counterparts
filed in all major markets. Jon Faiz Kayyem, vice president and general manager of Motorola's Clinical Micro Sensors division
said, ``These new patents are very broad and key to our core business. They reinforce the novelty and potential power of the
eSensor(TM) system.''
Motorola is aggressively pursuing intellectual property protection for bioelectronic detection, including its electrochemical
techniques, monolayer electrode modifications, instrument systems and signal processing techniques. In addition to its own
intellectual property, it has also exclusively licensed patents from the California Institute of Technology, Harvard University and
Concordia University. It hopes to employ its dominant patent position in bioelectronic detection to develop unique products
that will enable business relationships with market leaders in all sectors of the DNA diagnostics industry.
The eSensor(TM) system relies on bioelectronics, a major advance in DNA analysis that will broaden the use of DNA tests to
allow improved health and safety. Bioelectronics involves forming electronic circuits coupled to biological molecules. Target
DNA in blood or food, for instance, alters the electronic circuit at the electrode surface. The change can be readily sensed by
an electronic instrument as a positive indication of the target DNA's presence. Results are quickly and accurately displayed in
words, numbers, or graphics, minimizing human interpretation and error. This simplifies the process, and can dramatically
reduce the cost of DNA testing. Motorola's systems are designed for use in laboratories, physicians' offices, remote field
locations, and even homes.
The eSensor(TM) system employs small DNA biochips containing electronically active electrodes coated with specific DNA
probes. These probes on the chip's surface ``capture'' specific target DNA present in the sample. The capture event generates
a unique and characteristic electrical signal. Each eSensor(TM) chip can detect many different DNA sequences at once from a
single patient sample. Details of the technology can be found at www.microsensor.com.
About Motorola
Motorola, Inc. is a global leader in providing integrated communications solutions and embedded electronic solutions. Sales in
1999 were $33.1 billion. Additional corporate information is available at www.motorola.com.
Clinical Micro Sensors, a division of Motorola, is a leader in the field of mass applied genomics -- the widespread application
of genetic knowledge to medicine and industry. CMS is developing DNA detection units and disposable biochip cartridges,
combining universal platform design and advanced bioelectronic technology. The CMS eSensor(TM) system is poised to set
new standards for rapid, cost-effective DNA analysis in healthcare, agriculture, food safety, animal health and breeding, and
environmental monitoring.
Motorola and the Motorola logo are registered trademarks of Motorola Inc.
SOURCE: Clinical Micro Sensors |
