Cepheid GeneXpert(R) System Receives Department of Homeland Security Certification
Wednesday March 22, 7:00 am ET
SAFETY Act Designation Makes GeneXpert Biothreat Solutions More Accessible to Organizations Across the United States
SUNNYVALE, Calif., March 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Cepheid (Nasdaq: CPHD - News), a broad-based molecular diagnostics company, announced today that it has received both certification and designation of the GeneXpert® technology as Qualified Anti-terrorism Technology (QATT). GeneXpert is now listed among products approved by the Department of Homeland Security and is granted coverage under the Support Anti-Terrorism by Fostering Effective Technology Act known as the SAFETY Act.
The SAFETY Act encourages the development and deployment of anti-terrorism technologies that will substantially enhance the protection of the nation. The Act reflects the intent of Congress to ensure the threat of liability does not deter potential sellers from developing and commercializing technologies that could significantly reduce the risk or mitigate the effect of terrorist acts. It creates certain liability limitations when QATTs have been deployed but does not limit liability where an act of terrorism has not occurred.
"All Cepheid suppliers, vendors, and customers benefit from the protection of SAFETY Act Certification knowing that the GeneXpert System meets the government's most stringent standards for biothreat technology," said Cepheid Chief Executive Officer John Bishop. "The GeneXpert technology has been demonstrated to be an accurate and effective solution to meeting varying needs in the potential detection of biothreat agents."
Cepheid's GeneXpert is the world's only system to combine sample preparation with real time PCR (polymerase chain reaction) amplification and detection -- delivering fully-integrated and automated DNA analysis. The system purifies, concentrates, detects and identifies targeted nucleic acid sequences, delivering answers from unprocessed samples in minutes. Current techniques for performing the same complex sample prep and PCR procedures involve skilled technicians in microbiology labs performing manual tasks that can take more than a day to complete. No specialized facilities or highly skilled laboratory training is required to operate the GeneXpert System.
About Cepheid
Cepheid (Nasdaq: CPHD - News), based in Sunnyvale, Calif., is a molecular diagnostics company that develops, manufactures, and markets fully-integrated systems for genetic analysis in the clinical, industrial and biothreat markets. The company's systems enable rapid, sophisticated genetic testing for organisms and genetic-based diseases by automating otherwise complex manual laboratory procedures. The company's easy-to-use systems integrate a number of complicated and time-intensive steps, including sample preparation, DNA amplification and detection, which enable the analysis of complex biological samples in its proprietary test cartridges. Through its strong molecular biology capabilities, the company is focusing on those applications where rapid molecular testing is particularly important, such as identifying infectious disease and cancer in the clinical market; food, agricultural, and environmental testing in the industrial market; and identifying bio-terrorism agents in the biothreat market. See cepheid.com for more information. |
