Nanogen, Inc. (Nasdaq: NGEN), developer of molecular and rapid diagnostic products, announced today that it has signed a licensing and supply agreement with Scandinavian Gene Synthesis (SGS) for use of the Company's proprietary MGB Probe technology and synthetic nucleic acid chemistries including dyes and quenchers for use in human in vitro diagnostic testing. Under the licensing agreement, SGS will have rights to use their cGMP manufacturing capabilities to make and sell molecular diagnostic products incorporating the Nanogen molecular technology. Terms of the agreement include an upfront license fee and the commitment for Nanogen to supply component products for use by SGS in the design and manufacture of custom DNA oligonucleotides for the molecular IVD industry.
“The market for molecular diagnostics is growing at more than 20% per year,” said David Ludvigson, Nanogen’s President and Chief Operating Officer. “With more than 40 molecular diagnostic reagent and kit products in our portfolio and many additional licensees, it’s clear our proprietary nucleic acid chemistries have proven to be reliable building blocks for molecular biology applications. We believe that making our MGB technology widely available as the components of choice for PCR based diagnostics will help to grow the market; and enabling quality cGMP manufacturers like SGS to supply the market is part of our business strategy.”