Lenetix Launches Screening Study of New Down Syn...( MINEOLA N.Y. Feb. 5 /- Lenetix In...),Health

MINEOLA, N.Y., Feb. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Lenetix, Inc. today announced the launch of an Institutional Review Board (IRB)-approved screening study of an improved first and second trimester non-invasive fetal diagnostic test to detect Down syndrome. The Lenetix PloidYX(TM) maternal blood test promises to be the most accurate and comprehensive test yet developed for the detection of fetal aneuploidies, the presence of extra chromosomes, which cause Down syndrome (T-21) and other chromosomal abnormalities.

Risk assessment for Down syndrome is routinely offered to patients in the first and/or second trimester of pregnancy. These evaluations rely on indirect ultrasound and biochemical exams, which are of imperfect accuracy. Patients deemed "at risk" by these tests are generally referred for genetic counseling and amniocentesis or CVS, invasive testing procedures which are known to cause miscarriages. The Lenetix PloidYX technology directly interrogates the fetal chromosomal status non-invasively, detecting not only Down syndrome (Trisomy 21), but other aneuploidies such as Trisomy 13, 18, and deviations in the numbers of the sex chromosomes. The superior accuracy of the Lenetix test promises fewer false positives and will therefore greatly reduce the number of unnecessary invasive tests -- and the fetal losses they can cause.

"We take deep pride in the technology we have developed because it has the potential to impact the lives of millions of women and their unborn children," said Lenetix president and CEO Leonard H. Kellner. "Patients and doctors are constantly required to weigh the importance of an invasive and possibly unneeded procedure against the possible harm it could cause, and we are confident that this current IRB assessment is the next step towards making that difficult decision unnecessary."

"Pregnant women and their physicians are clamoring for an improved, non- invasive prenatal test f
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