Bio-Genesys And Affymetrix (Santa Clara, California) Partner To Offer Animal Genomic Testing Services To Professional Farming Operations

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Affymetrix, Inc. (NASDAQ:AFFX) and United Kingdom-based Bio-Genesys Diagnostics announced today that they have entered a partnership to offer commercial genotyping services. Under the terms of the agreement, the genetic testing services offered by Bio-Genesys Diagnostics for cattle, pigs, goats, sheep, and camelids will be run exclusively on Affymetrix’s technology. The partnership leverages the broad range of reproductive and diagnostic solutions offered by Bio-Genesys Diagnostics to professional farming operations and veterinarians and the strong technical and customization expertise from Affymetrix in developing custom genotyping arrays and panels in agrigenomics.

“Genomic selection speeds up the process at work in selection through conventional breeding by significantly increasing the rate of genetic progress through much shorter generation intervals.”

“The future of animal genetics and animal breeding is linked to artificial reproductive technologies, in particular with respect to the sale of semen and embryos,” stated Dr. Jack Behan, commercial director of Bio-Genesys. “The integration of genomic testing into existing breeding programs ensures that the reliability of donor animals, and therefore the intensity of genetic selection, is markedly increased.”

“The genomic testing of herds and flocks gives farmers the opportunity to benchmark the genetic quality and capability of their stock,” explained Rachael Fawkes, business development manager at Bio-Genesys. “Genomic selection speeds up the process at work in selection through conventional breeding by significantly increasing the rate of genetic progress through much shorter generation intervals.”

Results from the Bio-Genesys Diagnostics tests have enabled customers to significantly improve the genetic response in a single generation, due to targeted breeding. Bio-Genesys Diagnostics, in collaboration with Affymetrix’s technical team, has developed a commercial cattle breeding array which is now promoted across Europe.

“Until now, livestock farmers across the UK and Europe have not had access to a cost-effective means of genomic testing of their herds,” said Dr. Michelle Doherty, who provides a science communications and consulting service to Bio-Genesys. “Although genomics testing provides valuable information, the cost of such testing has been generally prohibitive, with the price of a single test often higher than the value of the animal itself. The advent of new, lower-cost technologies is revolutionizing livestock breeding and production, and Bio-Genesys is set to lead the way in the UK and Europe.”

“Affymetrix has a proven track record of successful deployment of genotyping solutions in support of industrial scale genomic selection programs in species of key economic importance in livestock, poultry, aquaculture, and plant-based molecular breeding programs. We are excited to enable Bio-Genesys’ commercial genotyping service for multiple livestock species using our Axiom 384HT genotyping solution. Bio-Genesys required a genotyping technology that offered complete customization flexibility to develop multispecies custom designed arrays which generate high quality genomic data quickly, consistently, and cost effectively. The Axiom 384HT platform delivers all of these requirements in routine industrial testing,” said Laurent Bellon, PhD, senior vice-president and general manager, Genotyping Business Unit at Affymetrix.

About Bio-Genesys Diagnostics

Bio-Genesys Ltd is based in Ludlow, Shropshire, UK and offers reproductive and diagnostic solutions for professional farming operations and Veterinary Practitioners. Bio-Genesys’ core competency is in assisted reproductive technology, veterinary bio-banking and cryogenically stored gametes. This stems from the worldwide veterinary practice and commercial business experience of the organization’s founder and Managing Director, Dr. Jack Behan, who is an experienced ART technician, scientist and commercial business leader which means the company understands the challenges of their customers and can offer solutions to help.

About Affymetrix

Affymetrix technologies enable multiplex and simultaneous analysis of biological systems at the cell, protein, and gene level, facilitating the rapid translation of benchtop research into clinical and routine use for human health and wellness. Affymetrix provides leadership and support, partnering with customers in pharmaceutical, diagnostic, and biotechnology companies, as well as leading academic, government, and non-profit research institutes in their quest to use biology for a better world. More than 2,300 microarray systems have been shipped around the world and more than 94,000 peer-reviewed papers have been published citing Affymetrix technologies. Affymetrix is headquartered in Santa Clara, California, and has manufacturing facilities in Cleveland, San Diego, Vienna, and Singapore. Affymetrix has about 1,100 employees and maintains sales and distribution operations worldwide. For more information about Affymetrix, please visit www.affymetrix.com

Forward-looking statements

All statements in this press release that are not historical are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act as amended, including statements regarding Affymetrix’ “expectations,” “beliefs,” “hopes,” “intentions,” “strategies,” or the like. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially for Affymetrix from those projected. These and other risk factors are discussed in Affymetrix’ Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014, and other SEC reports for subsequent quarterly periods.

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