Transgenomic Completes Licensing Option With Dana-Farber Cancer Institute on Cold-PCR for Enrichment of DNA...( OMAHA Neb. April 7 /- Transgenomic In...)

OMAHA, Neb., April 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Transgenomic, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: TBIO), a leading global biotechnology company, announces that it has completed a licensing option with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA with regard to a method known as Cold-PCR. This variation of the standard PCR technology enriches mutations in samples where normal DNA predominates. Cold-PCR was invented at Dana-Farber by Dr. Mike Makrigiorgos who has demonstrated its effectiveness in enriching for mutations in cancer-related genes in samples where DNA sequencing cannot detect very low concentrations of somatic DNA mutation.

"We are very excited to be able to work with Dana-Farber on continuing to develop this technology. Cold-PCR has the potential to further increase the sensitivity of Transgenomic's WAVE DHPLC and Surveyor Nuclease products for mutation detection in cancer and mitochondrial diseases," said Eric Kaldjian, CSO at Transgenomic. "In combination, Cold-PCR and WAVE/Surveyor have the potential to detect one mutant copy of DNA out of a thousand to as many as ten thousand normal copies. This will be particularly valuable in cancer-related mutation detection of free DNA in blood and body fluids and in producing a mutation profile of primary tumors to predict resistance to targeted therapies. It could also have application in analysis of mitochondrial DNA heteroplasmies."

"We are delighted to be able to develop jointly the application of Cold-PCR with Transgenomic's existing technologies," said Dr. Mike Makrigiorgos, Director of Medical Physics and Biophysics Division at Dana-Farber and an associate Professor of Radiation Oncology at Harvard Medical School. "We believe that coupling Cold-PCR with DHPLC and Surveyor Nuclease promises a significant solution to high sensitivity detection of somatic mutations that are key to cancer biology."

Cold-PCR will have applicability in detection of
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