Press Release

Nagoya, Japan, January 12, 2010 - Medical & Biological Laboratories, Co., Ltd. (MBL) (Naka-ku, Nagoya; President & CEO, Katsuhiko Nishida) in collaboration with its subsidiary company, G&G Science Co., Ltd. (Fukushima; President: Takuya Koshizaka) has successfully developed a human papillomavirus (HPV) genotyping reagent -GENOSEARCH-HPV31- and launches this product today.

Over 100 different HPV genotypes have been identified to date. HPVs cause several diseases such as cancers of the cervix, esophagus, anus, rectum, mouth, throat, and tongue; condyloma acuminatum; and skin papilloma, depending on the viral genotypes and the site of infection.

Our product enables the rapid detection of 31 HPV genotypes, including 13 that are associated with a high risk of developing cervical cancer, with high sensitivity and specificity. This product is expected to be useful in research on high-risk HPV genotypes for cervical cancer, which vary among regions and races; the development of HPV vaccines; the assessment of the risk of developing cervical cancer, etc.

Furthermore, when “GENOSEARCH-HPV31” is used in combination with MBL’s liquid-based cytology (LBC) system“TACAS”, a series of cervical cancer and HPV tests can be performed as a set from cells collected and prepared for the LBC analysis.

Our product is based on the PCR-SSOP-Luminex® method. HPV DNA is isolated from pathological and cytological samples and from cultured cells, amplified by PCR, and quantified using the Luminex® analyzer. A maximum of 96 samples can be analyzed simultaneously.

The Luminex® method is based on xMAP® technology and is used worldwide. This method enables multiplexing of up to 100 different assays targeting nucleotides, antigens, antibodies, etc., using a single sample, in a rapid and precise manner. The Luminex® analyzer is also available from MBL.