NEW
HAVEN, April 16, 2002/– Molecular Staging Inc.
(MSI) today announced the publication of a paper in
today’s issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS) that
describes a method for generating millions of DNA copies
from just a few cells.

The
increasing trend to study disease and drug response at the
genetic level has focused attention on DNA as a precious
resource.  Researchers
need sufficient high quality DNA to address the rapid
growth in both the volume and variety of genetic tests,
yet typically the amount of DNA from individual patient
samples is limited and the methods used to extract DNA are
cumbersome.

“MSI
has developed the first effective method of extracting and
amplifying the entire human genome approximately one
million-fold in a few simple steps,” said Dr. Stephen
Kingsmore, Chief Operating Officer of MSI. 
“We believe the availability of this technology
has the potential to transform the current practice of
genetic testing.”

In
particular, MSI’s MDA technology enables:

•  Virtually unlimited number of genetic tests per
  sample

•  Use of samples such as buccal swabs, mouthwash,
  finger-prick,  etc.

•  Use of DNA from alternative sources such as
  biopsies, needle aspirates, etc.                                                                                                                                        

• An
  increase in the practice of archiving DNA for additional
  testing  or retesting

The
method is described in detail in the paper entitled
Comprehensive Human Genome Amplification Using Multiple
Displacement Amplification, PNAS, Volume 99 (8), 2002, pp
5261-5266.

“Earlier
attempts to amplify the whole genome lead only to
amplification of a subset of the genome, thus rendering
these methods useless as a general tool for genetic
analysis,” stated Dr. Michael Egholm, Vice President of
Research at MSI, and co-author of the paper. 
“The technology, multiple displacement
amplification (MDA), is a substantial advancement over
currently available whole genome amplification methods,
rapidly amplifying the genome with comprehensive loci
coverage, minimal bias between any loci and yielding 10+
kb fragments in a simple, scalable reaction,” continued
Dr. Egholm. 

Molecular
Staging has exclusively licensed MDA from Yale University.
MSI is a privately held life science company developing a
portfolio of proprietary technologies that are
transforming the detection and measurement of proteins and
nucleic acids.  MSI’s
technologies, combined with sophisticated bioinformatics,
broadly enable a wide range of products and services
across multiple health care markets. 

One of MSI’s core technologies is Rolling Circle
Amplification Technology (RCAT^TM), an
amplification process that has significant advantages in
terms of sensitivity, multiplexing, dynamic range and
scalability. MSI has exclusively licensed RCAT from Yale
University. 

Additional
information about MSI can be found at www.molecularstaging.com.