POTSDAM, GERMANY--(Marketwire - December 07, 2010) -

Signature Diagnostics /

Signature Diagnostics Receives Extended Patent Protection for its Proteasome-Complex Inhibitors

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* Company currently seeking development partners for these drug candidates

Potsdam, Germany, December 07, 2010 - Signature Diagnostics AG announced today that the European Patent Office (EPO) has granted a new patent providing extended protection for drug molecules licensed by the company from the Technical University of Darmstadt. The new patent (EP 1858913) covers peptide- mimetics and their use as inhibitors of the human proteasome complex. The molecules have immediate application in a variety of indications, including cancer and inflammatory disease. The company is currently seeking cooperation partners for further development of these proteasome-inhibitor drug candidates.

"This patent further strengthens our strong intellectual property portfolio in key therapeutic areas such as cancer and inflammation," commented André Rosenthal, Chief Executive Officer of Signature Diagnostics. "We are committed to maximizing the patent protection for these drug candidates, as they are essential value-drivers for the company and its future partners."

About Signature Diagnostics AG

Signature Diagnostics AG is a molecular diagnostics company based in Potsdam, Germany, focusing on the development and commercialization of novel molecular oncology diagnostic products for early detection (screening) and prognosis of cancer. The company has completed development of its first two diagnostic products for colorectal cancer screening ("Detector C/C+") and prognosis ("Predictor C"), which will be launched in 2011 in its own ISO 15189 certified service laboratory. Using its state-of-the-art technologies in tissue and blood sample collection, molecular pathology, Xenopatient™ platform, genome- wide profiling, data mining, and biostatistics, the company collaborates with clinical, pharmaceutical, and diagnostic partners. Signature Diagnostics sponsors and conducts large prospective, multicenter clinical trials with more than 30 primary care hospitals and several dozen colonoscopy centers in Germany to discover and validate biomarkers in oncology.

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Signature Diagnostics

Hermannswerder 20 A Potsdam Germany

Press release (PDF): http://hugin.info/143237/R/1469628/406932.pdf

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Source: Signature Diagnostics via Thomson Reuters ONE

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