Affymetrix Inc. (Nasdaq:AFFX) announced today that the PhyloChip, a custom Affymetrix microarray developed by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, won the bronze prize in the 2008 Wall Street Journal Technology Innovation Awards. The PhyloChip helps researchers identify dangerous pathogens before they can affect humans. The PhyloChip was the only biotech company in the top three to be recognized. There were 700 total entrants.
The custom array PhyloChip was developed to simultaneously identify and quantify up to 8,900 distinctive environmental and pathogenic microbial species in a single experiment, in less than nine hours. The PhyloChip is unprecedented in its ability to accurately test any clinical or environmental sample without the need for culturing. The chip has been used by the Department of Homeland Security for bioterror detection, the Japanese Defence Force, the U.S. Department of Energy in bioremediation of contaminated soils to detoxify the earth and the State of California Water Quality Board for monitoring contaminated beaches.
“The speed with which we can now carry out our research far outpaces serial cloning. We offer the potential for numerous applications, including human health assessment, water quality and environmental cleanup, enabling complete evaluation of numerous samples on a daily basis,” said Gary Andersen, Ph.D., project leader at Berkeley Lab. “Affymetrix has allowed us to replace expensive and time-consuming cloning and sequencing with a method that will offer a competitive advantage to anyone wanting to detect bacteria in soil, air, water or clinical samples.”
“We are proud of the team at Berkeley Lab for creating a custom array that enables researchers to analyze more environmental and pathogenic microbial species than traditional techniques,” said Kevin King, president of Affymetrix. “To date Affymetrix has enabled the design of more than 700 custom arrays, and this recognition by the Wall Street Journal confirms that we continue to enable scientists to innovate where there is no commercial array available on the market.”
In July the PhyloChip won an R&D Magazine award for technology advancement. It was recognized for its ability to quickly, comprehensively and accurately identify species within microbial samples from any environmental source, without any culturing required. The PhyloChip is not yet commercially available. For more information please contact Dr. Andersen at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
This is the second time Affymetrix has been recognized by a national publication for innovation this year. In March it was named one of the world’s 50 most innovative companies by Fast Company magazine.
About Affymetrix
Affymetrix GeneChip® microarray technology is the industry-standard tool for analyzing complex genetic information. After inventing microarray technology in the late 1980s, Affymetrix scientists have been dedicated to developing innovative products that provide researchers with a more complete view of the genome. These products continue to accelerate genetic research and enable scientists to develop diagnostics and tailor treatments for individual patients by identifying and measuring the genetic information associated with complex diseases.
Today, Affymetrix technology is used by the world’s top pharmaceutical, diagnostic and biotechnology companies, as well as leading academic, government and not-for-profit research institutes. More than 1,700 systems have been shipped around the world and more than 13,000 peer-reviewed papers have been published using the technology.
Affymetrix is headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif., and has manufacturing facilities in Sacramento, Calif., Cleveland, Ohio, and Singapore. The company has about 1,100 employees worldwide and maintains sales and distribution operations across Europe and Asia. For more information about Affymetrix, please visit the company’s website at www.affymetrix.com.
Forward-looking Statements
All statements in this press release that are not historical are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act as amended, including statements regarding Affymetrix’ “expectations,”“beliefs,” “hopes,”“intentions,” “strategies” or the like. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially for Affymetrix from those projected, including, but not limited to: risks and uncertainties relating to commercial success of the agreement with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory discussed in this press release; risks of the company’s ability to achieve and sustain higher levels of revenue, higher gross margins and reduced operating expenses; uncertainties related to technological approaches, manufacturing and product development; personnel retention; uncertainties related to cost and pricing of Affymetrix products; dependence on collaborative partners; uncertainties related to sole-source suppliers; risks associated with past and future acquisitions; uncertainties relating to FDA and other regulatory approvals; competition; risks relating to intellectual property of others and the uncertainties of patent protection and litigation. These and other risk factors are discussed in Affymetrix’ Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007, and other SEC reports, including its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for subsequent quarterly periods. Affymetrix expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in Affymetrix’ expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements are based.
NOTE: Affymetrix, the Affymetrix logo and GeneChip® are registered trademarks owned or used by Affymetrix Inc.
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