Biocept Inc is developing a high-performance prenatal diagnostic for a broad range of aneuploid and deletion disorders. The diagnostic is based on Biocept's proprietary 3D HydroArray Technology platform.

In-house test results to date indicate that the 3D HydroArray Chromosomal Disorder Diagnostic will be a major advance over currently available methods:

* Comprehensive: Diagnosis of major aneuploid disorders and three important deletion disorders (DiGeorge, Cri-du-Chat and Williams-Beuren)
* Accurate: Results of testing to date demonstrate 100% sensitivity (no false negatives) and 100% specificity (no false positives)
* Fast: results within 24 hours of receipt of sample
* Cost Effective: Economics comparable to present methods

Chromosomal disorders occur in 0.7% of live births. They increase in frequency with advanced maternal age. For example, Down Syndrome occurs in about 1 in 100 births for women over 40. In 2000, the number of live births for women in this age group was nearly 100,000.

Diagnostic tests include karyotyping and Fluorescence in situ Hybridization (FISH). Karyotyping offers 99.5% sensitivity and specificity in diagnosing aneuploid chromosomal disorders, but typically takes 7-14 days to complete. FISH offers 24-48 hour turnaround times for aneuploid disorders and 7-14 days for microdeletion disorders.