Oxford, UK; January 29th, 2013 –
Oxford Immunotec, a medical diagnostic company developing tests in the fields of infectious and immunological disease and Lophius Biosciences, a leader in the field of novel T-cell based diagnostic test systems, announced today that the companies have signed agreements under which both companies will have access to certain intellectual property from the other party. Oxford Immunotec will be able to develop and commercialize novel T-cell based assays using Lophius’ proprietary UREA technology in certain territories. Lophius Biosciences will be able to develop and commercialize novel T-cell based assays under a license to Oxford Immunotec’s proprietary T-SPOT® technology. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Dr. Peter Wrighton-Smith, Chief Executive Officer, Oxford Immunotec commented: “We believe that Lophius’ UREA technology has distinct advantages over conventional methods of designing and producing antigens for T-cell based diagnostic test systems. We are looking forward to combining Lophius’ technology with our own, to develop and launch innovative new assays for infectious and immunological disease”.
“We are very pleased with this partnership with Oxford Immunotec, a leading company in the development of T-cell based assays, which provides us access to the T-SPOT® technology. This cooperation also confirms the commercial potential of our proprietary UREA technology platform which led to recent successful development of two CE-marked tests, namely T-Track® CMV and T-Track® EBV.” said Dr. Michael Lutz, Managing Director of Lophius Biosciences.
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About Oxford Immunotec
www.oxfordimmunotec.com
Oxford Immunotec Ltd., a global immunology-focused diagnostic company, is headquartered near Oxford, UK; its US operations are based in Marlborough, MA. The company is developing novel new tests in the fields of infectious and immunological disease based primarily on its patented T-SPOT® technology, the first FDA-approved method for directly quantifying antigen-specific T cells.
T-SPOT technology is a simple and extremely accurate method of studying a person’s cellular immune response and, as such, provides a unique methodology to diagnose and monitor diseases driven by a T cell response.
Oxford Immunotec’s primary product, the T-SPOT.TB test, is one of two Interferon-gamma release assays (IGRAs) which detect latent TB infection and are replacing the 90-year old tuberculin skin test currently used for this purpose. The World Health Organisation estimated in 2006 that 50 million latent TB screening tests were performed each year, representing a greater than $1bn per annum market opportunity for TB testing globally. IGRAs are now endorsed in clinical guidelines in over 20 countries and the T-SPOT.TB test has now received regulatory approval in over 40 countries worldwide, including the US, Europe and China. In the US, the T-SPOT.TB test has its own CPT® code (86481) with CMS reimbursement of approximately $103/test. The T-SPOT.TB test is also covered in various other clinical lab fee schedules around the world.
As well as developing & selling tests in kit form, Oxford Immunotec also runs a testing laboratory business in both the US and the UK (Oxford Diagnostic Laboratories) designed to provide unparalleled levels of expertise, service, turnaround time and simplicity for physicians wanting to access immunological tests such as the T-SPOT.TB test.
T-SPOT and the Oxford Immunotec logo are registered trademarks of Oxford Immunotec Ltd.
CPT is a registered trademark of the American Medical Association
[1] WHO. Diagnostics for tuberculosis : global demand and market potential. 2006
