San Diego-based Sequenom has entered into an agreement with a French pharmaceutical firm to distribute and market its new test for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in the United States. Under the terms of the pact, a firm called Nicox will distribute the test and associated reagents to ophthalmologists in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Sequenom will perform the analysis and issue the results. Nicox, which is based in France but has U.S. operations headquartered in New Jersey, already markets and distributes two other eye-related tests in the United States for the detection of conjunctivitis and Sjogren’s Syndrome, an autoimmune syndrome that affects the tear ducts. Sequenom’s test, known as RetnaGene, can be performed using a swab from a patient’s cheek. The assay analyzes a small number of genes that are responsible for about 70 percent of those who contract the disease and predict its progression. “We are confident in Nicox’s ability to leverage its growing sales team and expertise in the ophthalmic arena to successfully market the test,” said Sequenom President William Welch. Macular degeneration affects about 15 million in the United States, most of whom are the age of 60 or older. The “wet” version of the disease—which […]
San Diego-based Sequenom has entered into an agreement with a French pharmaceutical firm to distribute and market its new test for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in the United States.
Under the terms of the pact, a firm called Nicox will distribute the test and associated reagents to ophthalmologists in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Sequenom will perform the analysis and issue the results.
Nicox, which is based in France but has U.S. operations headquartered in New Jersey, already markets and distributes two other eye-related tests in the United States for the detection of conjunctivitis and Sjogren’s Syndrome, an autoimmune syndrome that affects the tear ducts.
Sequenom’s test, known as RetnaGene, can be performed using a swab from a patient’s cheek. The assay analyzes a small number of genes that are responsible for about 70 percent of those who contract the disease and predict its progression.
“We are confident in Nicox’s ability to leverage its growing sales team and expertise in the ophthalmic arena to successfully market the test,” said Sequenom President William Welch.
Macular degeneration affects about 15 million in the United States, most of whom are the age of 60 or older. The “wet” version of the disease—which includes blood vessel leakage in the retinal area—can lead to permanent vision loss, particularly central vision. The RetnaGene test can assess disease progression and risk at two, five, and 10 years after an initial diagnosis.
“The ability to identify those patients most at risk of progressing to wet AMD represents a major opportunity to optimize the management of their disease,” said Jerry St. Peter, Nicox’s executive vice president and general manager. “We are delighted to have formed this agreement with Sequenom Laboratories to market the RetnaGene AMD test, which fits perfectly within our diagnostics portfolio, and potentially other novel genetic tests in the future.”
Takeaway: A global firm can sometimes be the ideal distributor for a laboratory test in the United States as evidenced by Sequenom’s deal with Nicox.
