Date: 2012-11-30
Type of information: R&D agreement
Compound: NXTGNT - Center in Pharmaco (Epi)genomics
Company: Ghent University (Belgium) MDxHealth (Belgium)
Therapeutic area: Cancer - Oncology
Type agreement: R&D
Action mechanism:
Disease:
Details: * On November 30, 2012, MDxHealth, a molecular diagnostic company that develops and commercializes epigenetic tests to support cancer treatment, has joined forces with the Ghent University to establish NXTGNT, a new Center in Pharmaco (Epi)genomics. The mission of the Center is to accelerate innovation in personalized medicine by using advanced technology, knowledge and expertise in (epi)genetics. The Center will bring together scientific expertise from disease centered basic researchers, corresponding clinical validation teams, bioinformaticians, and cutting edge (epi)genomic technology focused on the discovery of effective individualized epigenetic-based diagnostic and personalized therapeutic products.
As a result of several years of productive collaboration between the Laboratory of Bioinformatics and Computational Genomics (BIOBIX), NXTGNT (UGent genome analysis facility), the Biomarked valorization consortium teams and MDxHealth, the new Center is located at Ghent University within the laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology. The facility will house MDxHealth\'s research team and lab equipment for development of epigenetic tests together with the Ghent University team for (epi)genetic sequencing. The facility works in close collaboration with the Laboratory of Bioinformatics and Computational Genomics, located at the Faculty of BioEngeneering, providing extensive expertise in epigenetic characterization and computing and visualization of (epi)genomic datasets. The Center is fully operational as off December 1, 2012.
\"The creation of NXTGNT as a Center in Pharmaco (Epi)genomics is welcome advancement in the field of epigenetics and personalized medicine. There is a history of successful collaboration between MDxHealth and the University of Ghent, where much of the early epigenetics sequencing work on our biomarkers was conducted,\" said Dr. Jan Groen CEO of MDxHealth. \"As more drugs are being developed alongside companion tests, there is a growing need for novel technologies, biomarkers and assays. We believe our experience in successfully developing personalized cancer epigenetic tests combined with the sequencing, bioinformatics and methylome analysis expertise contained in the new Center will prove extremely attractive to the pharmaceutical industry.\"
Financial terms:
Latest news: * On March 19, 2013, MDxHealth has announced the results from a large, epigenetic next generation sequencing based study that establishes a sensitive and cost-effective industry standard for genome-wide DNA methylation profiling. The results were published in the March 15 PLOS One Volume 8, Issue 3 (e59068). This study is an early result of the NXTGNT Center in Pharmaco (Epi)genomics, a joint collaboration between MDxHealth and the Ghent University first announced in November 2012.
Methyl Binding Domain (MBD)-based sequencing is currently the most cost-effective method for genome-wide identification of DNA methylation. Five commercially available kits for MBD enrichment, combined with Illumina-based next generation sequencing, were evaluated using inherent sequence data characteristics and most importantly, external validation data. Overall, the results obtained confirmed the need for quality control as the scientists found consistent large-scale differences in yield, sensitivity and specificity between the various kits. The goal of the study was to compare and harmonize industry standards, so that individual testing and comparative analyses can be conducted more objectively. Interestingly, profiling resulted in a re-discovery and validation of established markers in addition to valuable insights in the constitution of the entire epigenome.
