NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Quadrant Biosciences said today that it has entered three new licensing agreements with SUNY Upstate Medical University and Penn State University for the global commercialization of epigenetic biomarkers for autism spectrum disorder, Parkinson's disease, and concussion.
The licensed biomarker technology is based on detection of RNA molecules in saliva, Quadrant said. The company has been working closely with both institutions for several years and has supported research studies that have confirmed high correlations between the expression of specific salivary RNAs and the presence of ASD, Parkinson's, and concussion.
The Syracuse, New York-based company did not detail which biomarkers it has licensed, but researchers from Penn State, working with Quadrant, have shown, for example, that miR-1277-5p is down-regulated in severe traumatic brain injury.
The first test that Quadrant plans to commercialize will be for ASD, the firm said. Financial and other details of the licensing were not disclosed.