2/4/09 Stanford licenses IP for fetal DNA prenatal tests to Artemis
Health
Stanford University inked a co-exclusive worldwide license with
Artemis Health of Menlo Park, CA, to develop cell-free fetal DNA
prenatal diagnostic tests based on the research of Stanford bioengineering
professor Stephen Quake. The licensing deal will allow the privately
held company to develop a non-invasive prenatal blood test that predicts
chromosomal and genetic disorders. The agreement covers a suite of
IP based on Quake's cell-free fetal DNA analysis research, which
was featured last October in The Proceedings of the National Academy
of Sciences . The license includes the use of digital polymerase
chain reaction (PCR) technology and shotgun sequencing to analyze
cell-free fetal DNA from maternal blood, particularly for the diagnosis
of fetal genetic disorders such as Down's syndrome, Edwards syndrome
(trisomy 18), and Patau syndrome (trisomy 13). Stanford has applied
for a patent on the methodology outlined in the paper and has also
licensed the IP to Fluidigm, which was co-founded by Quake, who continues
to chair its scientific advisory board. Quake's project was partially
funded by a Coulter Translational Research Grant.
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