Wall Street Journal Selects PhyloChip Developed on the Affymetrix Platform as a Top Technology Innovation
October 03 2008 - 8:00AM
Business Wire
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.
Affymetrix (NASDAQ:AFFX)
Historical Stock Chart
From Sep 2024 to Oct 2024
Affymetrix (NASDAQ:AFFX)
Historical Stock Chart
From Oct 2023 to Oct 2024