St. George, UT-based molecular diagnostics firm DxNA is slated to acquire PathoGene, a company that develops PCR-based infectious disease diagnostics and is headquartered in Flagstaff, AZ, for an undisclosed price.
Announcing an agreement through which DxNA gains exclusive rights for Unit Dose Platform Applications of PathoGene’s “next-generation” multiplexed Staphylococcus MRSA+ assay on DxNA’s Real Time PCR GeneSTAT platform this week, the firms also said they had signed a letter of intent signaling the Utah company would buy the Arizona firm outright.
“In addition to testing for MRSA, PathoGene’s assay also detects multidrug resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococcus strains, which are actually much more common infections than MRSA. This is a significant step forward compared to current diagnostic methods and allows the assay to rapidly identify and differentiate three of the most common pathogens of hospital acquired infections…in a single multiplexed assay,” Todd Snowden, the firm’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “This provides information to physicians in about an hour that is critical to treatment decisions that save lives, improve patient outcomes and reduce treatment costs.”
Added DxNA President and CEO David Taus: “PathoGene’s novel approach with this Staph assay provides rapid clinical answers that impact patient care, costs and outcomes making the assay an ideal complement to our GeneSTAT platform.”