Arcis Biotechnology (“Arcis”), the nucleic acid sample preparation solution provider, and Mirnax Biosens (“Mirnax”), the developer of microRNA (miRNA) biomarkers for clinical diagnostics, have signed an exclusive license agreement for use of Arcis sample preparation and preservation technology.

Under the terms of the agreement, Mirnax gains access to Arcis’ nucleic acid sample preparation and preservation technology, to improve the stability of its clinically validated miRNA biomarkers for early disease detection. Arcis will also work with Mirnax to develop a microfluidic device integrating both technologies.

Mirnax’ biomarkers are designed for early disease diagnosis, including cancer, arthritis, and kidney disease. However, miRNA is often difficult to preserve, degrading rapidly following extraction, which will affect the accuracy of diagnosis. Arcis’ two-step, rapid nucleic acid extraction and preservation technology enables the fragile miRNA biomarkers to be extracted and stabilised in less than three minutes, without the need for instrumentation or heating or cooling steps.

Dr Jan Rogers, Chief Scientific Officer, Arcis Biotechnology, commented: “We are excited to partner with Mirnax, combining our synergistic technologies to improve the accuracy and speed of disease diagnoses. This latest agreement demonstrates the wide breadth of applications for our nucleic acid sample preparation technology, including clinical diagnostics which is an area that we look forward to exploring further.”

Enrique Sainz Martinez, Chief Executive Officer, Mirnax Biosens, said: “Using the Arcis sample prep technology we are able to successfully generate stable biomarkers for the diagnosis of pathologies with high incidence in the current population. This agreement supports our mission to develop products with high clinical value, and to ultimately improve patient quality of life.”

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