Epigenomics AG, a cancer molecular diagnostics company, signed a non-exclusive licensing agreement for its proprietary DNA methylation biomarker Septin 9 (mSEPT9) with Arup Laboratories, Inc (ARUP), a provider of diagnostic testing services based in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.
Under the agreement, Arup has obtained rights to use the mSEPT9 biomarker to develop a molecular-based laboratory test that can help physicians detect colorectal cancer based on a patient's blood sample. Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the USA. Epigenomics has repeatedly demonstrated that methylated DNA of the Septin 9 gene in blood plasma indicates the presence of colorectal cancer in early stages.
ARUP is the second commercial laboratory in the USA to non-exclusively license the mSEPT9 biomarker from Epigenomics with the goal of commercializing a laboratory-developed blood test for colorectal cancer. In February 2008, Quest Diagnostics, Inc, Madison, New Jersey, USA, already obtained a license to commercialize a laboratory-developed test for mSEPT9 in the USA.