GlycoMark Blood Test Included in Global Diabetes Care Guidelines as Emerging Technology

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands, Sept. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- At the 2007 annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) issued the new global diabetes guidelines of diabetes care which includes the management of postmeal glucose. These guidelines include the GlycoMark blood test as a new emerging technology to measure postmeal glucose.

In a released statement, the IDF indicated that the guideline emphasizes that people with diabetes should have their blood glucose levels closely monitored after meals in order to optimize diabetes control and reduce the risk of complications, particularly cardiovascular disease. This new approach to managing postmeal glucose will assist clinicians and organizations in developing effective strategies for managing diabetes.

"Diabetes is now recognized as one of the largest epidemics humanity has ever faced and a leading cause of death. It accounts for 3.8 million deaths per year, many of which are related to cardiovascular disease. This new advancement underscores the importance for people with diabetes and their healthcare providers to adopt all possible ways to better manage the disease," said Professor Stephen Colagiuri, Chair of the IDF Task Force on Clinical Guidelines.

The new IDF Guideline recommends that people with diabetes try to keep postmeal blood glucose levels to less than 7.8 mmol/l (140 mg/dl) two hours following a meal. IDF advises SMBG (self-monitoring of blood glucose) because it is the most practical method for measuring postmeal glucose and it allows people with diabetes to obtain "real-time" information about their glucose levels. This information enables people with diabetes and their healthcare providers to make timely adjustments in their treatment regimens to achieve and maintain their blood glucose levels within target. The guideline also includes the 1,5-anhydroglucitol blood test (GlycoMark) and continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) as emerging technologies for measuring postmeal glucose.

About GlycoMark

GlycoMark is an FDA approved test for monitoring intermediate glycemic control by measuring the levels of a monosaccharide 1,5-anhydroglucitol (1,5- AG) in blood. Multiple published studies in peer-reviewed journals have shown that the 1,5-AG test is a specific index of postprandial hyperglycemia (elevated after-meal glucose levels) and short-term glycemic control -- providing a useful complement to A1C testing. GlycoMark is being used in clinical practices nationwide and is available at major reference laboratories including Quest Diagnostics, LabCorp, Esoterix, Mayo Medical Laboratories, ARUP Laboratories, and Specialty Laboratories. The test is also available at most major contract research organizations for pharmaceutical research studies.

In a recent study published in the American Diabetes Association Diabetes Care journal (Dungan et al. Diabetes Care 2006; 29 (6): 1214-1219), it was shown that the GlycoMark 1,5-AG test reflected after-meal glucose levels more robustly than the A1C test. The study also showed that GlycoMark was able to reveal dramatically different after-meal glucose levels in patients with similar A1C levels.

Moreover, studies recently presented at the 67th Annual 2007 Scientific Sessions of the American Diabetes Association and other meetings show that GlycoMark is particularly valuable in detecting underlying treatment effects of agents such as exenatide (Byetta) and pramlintide (Symlin) which were not revealed by the gold standard hemoglobin A1C test. These findings have important implications for patient care and pharmaceutical research as the reduction of after-meal glucose rises is a key objective of diabetes drug therapy.

GlycoMark is being commercialized by a partnership between Toyota Tsusho America (New York, NY), Nippon Kayaku (Tokyo, Japan) and the BioMarker Group (Kannapolis, NC). GlycoMark activities are centered in the North Carolina Research Campus in Kannapolis, North Carolina, a 350-acre life sciences hub started by billionaire David H. Murdock.

More information about GlycoMark may be found at www.glycomark.com. References: 1. Guideline for Management of Postmeal Glucose, International Diabetes Federation, 20072. 2. Ceriello A, Postprandial Hyperglycemia and Diabetes Complications: Is it Time to Treat? Diabetes 2005; 54(1):1-7

CONTACT: Eric Button, President of BioMarker Group, +1-704-707-3759,ebutton@biomarkergroup.com

Web site: http://www.glycomark.com/