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| PamGene signs partnership with Erasmus university Medical Center Rotterdam and has been awarded USD 3 million governmental grants | | | 's-HERTOGENBOSCH, THE NETHERLANDS - July 18th 2001
PamGene and Erasmus University Rotterdam have announced a joint four years research program to find new approaches into osteoporosis and osteoartrosis problems. The partnership will accelerate research in this field and will lead to better treatment regimens for healthcare professionals and their patients. At the same time PamGene has been awarded two governmental grants (BIT and BTS) worth USD 3 million. The grants allow PamGene to speed up research and development efforts on their patented microarray technology and PamChip™ applications..
PamGene will allocate the BTS-subsidy to a joint 4-year project with four Dutch academic research institutions on further research on the microarray technology at the total cost of USD 6.5 million. The BIT subsidy will be used for development of the incubation and new measurement technology, also involving PamGene’s strategic Japanese partner Olympus Optical, to read the results of the PamChip™. This project involves USD 7 million in total.
The joint research program with the Erasmus University will investigate gene expression profiles in bone and cartilage disorders. Therefore the combination of the clinical and research expertise from the departments Internal Medicine, Orthopaedics and Ear Nose and Throat of Erasmus university Medical Center Rotterdam and the technology provided by PamGene is unique. The collaboration will involve Erasmus University Rotterdam purchasing PamGene’s flow-through microarray system with access to a novel RNA amplification procedure that is able to eliminate the inherent bias of gene expression studies that utilize PCR.
"This collaboration will allow us to study the molecular mechanisms of bone and cartilage metabolism in order to discover new diagnostic markers and novel therapeutic targets in various diseases," said Dr Harrie Weinans, the Director of the Orthopaedic Research Laboratory. "Discoveries in this field of research could mean identification of novel growth factors that could repair bone and cartilage after physical injury or with osteoarthrosis and new treatments for bone diseases like osteoporosis".
About PamGene
PamGene is a biotech company which has patented technologies for a second-generation microarray platform and an expression profiling system. The PamChip™ allows faster, more accurate and cost-effective test results. The technology will be commercialized in academic research, pharma and biotech R&D, health management and non-pharma Life Sciences such as agricultural applications and food. PamGene secured a financing round of USD 6.4 million at the end of 2000. Investors were GIMV, ALTA Partners and Life Science Partners. PamGene recently signed a partnership with Olympus. The workforce is expected to grow to approximately 50 employees in 2002.
About Erasmus university Medical Center Rotterdam
Erasmus University Rotterdam with its highly rated Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, with around 1500 medical students, 500 students in Health Policy and Management and 1300 employees. The medical faculty, together with the various hospitals, Dijkzigt Hospital, The Sophia Children's Hospital and the Daniel den Hoed Clinic, forms the Erasmus university Medical Centre Rotterdam.
Contacts:
Tim Kievits, Chief Executive Officer, PamGene International B.V.
Telephone: +31-73-615 8080; Email:
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; URL: www.pamgene.com
Dr Harrie Weinans, Erasmus Medical Center Rotterdam.
Tel. +31-10-4087367; Email:
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Senter, Technological Cooperation ( Technologische Samenwerking since 1 May 2001 BIT, BTS and SMO are integrated in this new programme) Telephone: for national projects: +31-070-3610235, for international projects: +31-70-3610311, Email:
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