Galileo Genomics Purchases Illumina BeadStation Platforms to Fine Map Candidate Regions For at Least Five Disease Gene Discovery Programs
Thursday August 19, 6:00 am ET
SAN DIEGO & MONTREAL, Quebec--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 19, 2004--Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ:ILMN - News) and Galileo Genomics Inc. today announced that they have signed a collaborative agreement with a value exceeding $1.5 million. Under the terms of the agreement, Galileo has purchased two Illumina BeadStation 500GX genotyping systems for use in fine mapping candidate regions in a minimum of five disease gene discovery programs. The resulting information will be used to produce GeneMaps, comprised of multiple interacting genes unequivocally associated with disease, which will be used for the development of innovative therapeutics, diagnostics and pharmacogenomics services. Illumina is also licensing the diagnostic rights to Galileo's osteoarthritis gene discovery program.
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The first study is in Crohn's disease, a debilitating, chronic and progressive gastrointestinal disorder that afflicts over 500,000 people in North America. This study will analyze single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers within candidate regions associated with Crohn's disease that were recently identified by Galileo from genome-wide scans of 1,500 samples from the Quebec Founder Population.
DNA samples for Galileo's programs are collected in collaboration with over 800 Quebec clinical investigators. The Quebec Founder Population, of French descent, is believed to be among the world's best for gene discovery in common diseases, based on its high levels of genetic homogeneity, extended linkage disequilibrium (genetic sharing) and large size (nearly 6 million people).
The two BeadStation systems have a capacity of 1.2 million genotypes per day and will be run at high utilization rates, generating more than 60 million genotypes in the five programs under this agreement. The agreement is extendable to additional fine mapping projects that Galileo is conducting in a total of 27 diseases.
Among the five programs covered by the agreement is one for osteoarthritis gene discovery. The agreement provides Illumina a license to the resulting diagnostic rights with which Illumina can create future diagnostic products containing the key biomarkers discovered in the program.
"We are very pleased to be using the BeadStations," noted Dr. John Hooper, President and CEO of Galileo Genomics. "We expect the outstanding accuracy and call rates of Illumina's technology, and the short time between SNP selection and the completion of genotyping of candidate regions, to accelerate Galileo's discovery of GeneMaps in our disease gene discovery and pharmacogenomics programs."
"The BeadStation should allow Galileo to maximize the value of their samples and methods and rapidly associate particular genes with the diseases they cause," commented Jay Flatley, Illumina President & CEO. "We are excited to be involved with Galileo and with their ambitious discovery programs, which promise to identify genes and biomarkers that will be important in shaping the future of medicine."
About the Companies
Galileo Genomics (www.galileogenomics.com) is a next-generation genomics company dedicated to the discovery of GeneMaps, genes and biomarkers associated with the root cause of common diseases and drug response. GeneMaps are groups of interacting genes for common diseases that define key biochemical pathways leading to disease causation. GeneMaps allow the acceleration of drug target identification, validation and downstream development. Additionally, Galileo's pharmacogenomics capability to stratify patient populations and evaluate drug response further accelerates the clinical development of drug candidates. Galileo's research relies on DNA sampling from the Quebec Founder Population, whose extensive genetic sharing and low genetic variability make this population ideal for gene discovery. In recognition of the contribution to Galileo's research made by the Quebec Founder Population, the company has committed to donate three per cent of its net profits to a trust fund for the benefit of Quebecers. Galileo Genomics is not affiliated in any way with Galileo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. of Santa Clara, California.
Illumina (www.illumina.com) is developing next-generation tools for the large-scale analysis of genetic variation and function. The Company's proprietary BeadArray technology -- now used in leading genomics centers around the world -- provides the throughput, cost effectiveness and flexibility necessary to enable researchers in the life sciences and pharmaceutical industries to perform the billions of tests necessary to extract medically valuable information from advances in genomics and proteomics. This information will help pave the way to personalized medicine by correlating genetic variation and gene function with particular disease states, enhancing drug discovery, allowing diseases to be detected earlier and more specifically, and permitting better choices of drugs for individual patients. |
