DGAP-News: Myriad Genetics, Inc. /
Institut Pasteur and Myriad RBM Publish Initial Results From Landmark
Study of Immune Response
20.03.2014 / 21:00
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PARIS and SALT LAKE CITY, 2014-03-20 21:00 CET (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --
Institut Pasteur and Myriad RBM, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Myriad Genetics,
Inc., today announced they have published an initial data analysis from the
landmark Milieu Interieur Project in the journal Immunity, which provided new
insights into the healthy human immune response. The Milieu Interieur project
(www.milieuinterieur.fr/en) is a population-based study supported by the French
National Ministry of Research and coordinated by the Institut Pasteur, Paris
that will characterize the immune phenotypes of 1,000 healthy subjects. The
results could lead to the development of novel diagnostics and companion
diagnostics.
In the paper titled, 'Functional Analysis using Standardized Whole Blood
Stimulation Systems Defines the Boundaries of a Healthy Immune Response to
Complex Stimuli,' the authors describe the use of Myriad RBM's TruCulture(r)
technology, a proprietary blood collection and culturing system, to
characterize individual immune responses of 25 healthy people to medically
relevant stimuli. Unlike the current laboratory-based methods, TruCulture is
deployed at the site of collection and therefore avoids variability from
shipping and complex processing as well as the expense of a cell culture
facility and staff. The results in the Immunity paper show that TruCulture
stimulations are reproducible, with close correspondence in repeated tests from
the same subject.
'The immune system is highly complex and is responsible for maintaining healthy
conditions in the body. Understanding responses to stimuli is critical to
understanding the origins and progression of infection, autoimmunity and
cancer,' said Matthew Albert, co-coordinator of Milieu Interieur and director
of the Immunology Department at Institut Pasteur. 'As a clinical pathologist
and immunologist, I believe it is important to have immune monitoring tools
that reliably measure inflammatory responses and TruCulture performed
exceedingly well. Our findings will lead to additional studies and possibly new
diagnostic tests for inflammatory, autoimmune, oncological, and infectious
diseases, as well as companion diagnostics for therapeutics.'
In this study, the 27 immune system stimulants were incorporated into
TruCulture to determine how healthy subjects' immune systems would respond to
bacteria, fungi, viruses, therapeutics and vaccines. Immune responses were
measured using protein biomarkers from Myriad RBM's MAP (Multi-Analyte
Profiling) platform. Analysis of the data reveal a unique pattern of immune
system responses for each stimulant tested that can be further studied and used
to define genetic and/or environmental causes of natural or disease-induced
variations in the human immune system. For example, the researchers reported
that two of the first 25 subjects evaluated were unable to produce the cytokine
interleukin one alpha (IL-1alpha) - a protein associated with immune and
inflammatory response - in response to any of the stimuli evaluated. These
types of insights may help explain susceptibility to a specific disease or
predict response to immune-modulating therapies.
'The TruCulture system reliably profiles the complexity of the immune system in
a simple blood collection and culture tube. We believe it will usher in a new
era for monitoring the immune response,' said Ralph McDade, president of Myriad
RBM. 'We are actively pursuing several research collaborations to develop
TruCulture as a novel diagnostic in cancer immunotherapy, autoimmune disorders
and vaccine response.'
About Institut Pasteur and the Milieu Interieur Project
The Institut Pasteur is a private, non-profit foundation. Its mission is to
help prevent and treat diseases, mainly those of infectious origin, through
research, teaching, and public health initiatives. The Milieu Interieur project
is a population-based study supported by the French National Ministry of
Research and coordinated by the Institut Pasteur, Paris. The goal of Milieu
Interieur is to characterize the immune phenotypes of 1,000 healthy subjects in
response to 32 complex immune stimulants. Responses to these stimuli in
TruCulture are being assessed using advanced cellular, nucleic acid, proteomic
and metabolic assay technologies. For more information visit:
www.milieuinterieur.fr/en
About Myriad RBM
Myriad RBM is a wholly owned subsidiary of Myriad Genetics, Inc. Myriad RBM's
biomarker discovery platform provides clinical researchers and healthcare
providers with reproducible, quantitative, multiplexed data for hundreds of
proteins to advance drug development and patient care. The Company's
proprietary Multi Analyte Profiling (MAP) technology offers preclinical and
clinical researchers with broad, cost-effective analyses of multiple proteins
from a single, small sample volume. MAP technology also supports Myriad RBM's
drive to develop companion diagnostics in areas of unmet medical need such as
neuropsychiatry, nephrology, and immunology. More information about Myriad RBM
can be found at www.myriadrbm.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains 'forward-looking statements' within the meaning of
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements
relating to the Milieu Interieur project characterizing the immune phenotypes
of 1,000 healthy subjects; the results of the Milieu Interieur project
potentially leading to the development of novel diagnostics and companion
diagnostics; the current findings leading to additional studies and possibly
new diagnostic tests for inflammatory, autoimmune, oncological, and infectious
diseases, as well as companion diagnostics for therapeutics; insights such as
those gained in the current study helping to explain susceptibility to a
specific disease or to predict response to immune-modulating therapies; the
TruCulture system ushering in a new era for monitoring the immune response;
developing TruCulture as a novel diagnostic in cancer immunotherapy, autoimmune
disorders and vaccine response; and the Company's strategic directives under
the caption 'About Myriad Genetics.' These 'forward-looking statements' are
management's present expectations of future events and are subject to a number
of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially
and adversely from those described in the forward-looking statements. These
risks include, but are not limited to: the risk that sales and profit margins
of our existing molecular diagnostic tests and companion diagnostic services
may decline or will not continue to increase at historical rates; risks related
to changes in the governmental or private insurers reimbursement levels for our
tests; the risk that we may be unable to develop or achieve commercial success
for additional molecular diagnostic tests and companion diagnostic services in
a timely manner, or at all; the risk that we may not successfully develop new
markets for our molecular diagnostic tests and companion diagnostic services,
including our ability to successfully generate revenue outside the United
States; the risk that licenses to the technology underlying our molecular
diagnostic tests and companion diagnostic services tests and any future tests
are terminated or cannot be maintained on satisfactory terms; risks related to
delays or other problems with operating our laboratory testing facilities;
risks related to public concern over our genetic testing in general or our
tests in particular; risks related to regulatory requirements or enforcement in
the United States and foreign countries and changes in the structure of the
healthcare system or healthcare payment systems; risks related to our ability
to obtain new corporate collaborations or licenses and acquire new technologies
or businesses on satisfactory terms, if at all; risks related to our ability to
successfully integrate and derive benefits from any technologies or businesses
that we license or acquire; risks related to increased competition and the
development of new competing tests and services; the risk that we or our
licensors may be unable to protect or that third parties will infringe the
proprietary technologies underlying our tests; the risk of patent-infringement
claims or challenges to the validity of our patents; risks related to changes
in intellectual property laws covering our molecular diagnostic tests and
companion diagnostic services and patents or enforcement in the United States
and foreign countries, such as the Supreme Court decision in the lawsuit
brought against us by the Association for Molecular Pathology et al; risks of
new, changing and competitive technologies and regulations in the United States
and internationally; and other factors discussed under the heading 'Risk
Factors' contained in Item 1A of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as any updates to
those risk factors filed from time to time in our Quarterly Reports on Form
10-Q or Current Reports on Form 8-K. All information in this press release is
as of the date of the release, and Myriad undertakes no duty to update this
information unless required by law.
CONTACT: Myriad Media Contact:
Ron Rogers
(801) 584-3065
rrogers@myriad.com
Myriad Investor Contact:
Scott Gleason
(801) 584-1143
sgleason@myriad.com
Institut Pasteur Media Contact:
Nadine Peyrolo
+33 (0)1 45 68 81 47
presse@pasteur.fr
News Source: NASDAQ OMX
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Language: English
Company: Myriad Genetics, Inc.
United States
ISIN: US62855J1043
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258808 20.03.2014
DGAP-News: Institut Pasteur and Myriad RBM Publish Initial Results From Landmark Study of Immune Response
| Source: EQS Group AG