Luminex Corporation Announces Agenda for Planet xMAP USA Multiplexing Symposium

AUSTIN, Texas, April 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Luminex Corporation , the worldwide leader in multiplexed solutions, today announced the agenda for its seventh annual Planet xMAP(R) USA multiplexing symposium. The event will be held May 12-14, 2010, at the Hilton Baltimore Hotel in Baltimore, Maryland.

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Planet xMAP USA 2010 will feature keynote addresses from James D. Watson, Ph.D., Noble Prize-winning scientist and co-discoverer of the structure of DNA; Todd R. Golub, M.D., Director of the Broad Institute Cancer Program; and Linette Granen, MT (ASCP), DLM, Manager of Corporate Relations at the Association of Public Health Laboratories.

Planet xMAP USA 2010 will bring together scientists and researchers performing groundbreaking work in clinical diagnostics and life science research with Luminex xMAP Technology, and will feature end-user presentations, dynamic interactive sessions, discussion groups, Luminex and partner exhibits, scientific posters and networking events. This annual symposium is for users or prospective users in academic, pharma and clinical labs who are interested in expanding multiplexed testing capabilities for proteins and nucleic acids.

Day One, Wednesday, May 12

Planet xMAP USA 2010 will begin on Wednesday, May 12, with a keynote address from James D. Watson, Ph.D., titled “Rules for Science.” Day One will continue with two concurrent tracks for introductory/prospective xMAP Technology users, and advanced end-users.

Day Two, Thursday, May 13

Day Two, Thursday, May 13, will begin with a keynote address from Linette Granen, MT (ASCP), DLM, titled, “Public Health Laboratories and Luminex: Anatomy of a Partnership.” Following Ms. Granen’s keynote address, there will be two separate tracks for Diagnostics and Life Science Research related topics.

The Diagnostics track will include sessions on genetic testing including cystic fibrosis and newborn screening, as well as HLA and infectious disease testing. Diagnostics sessions will be presented by the following:

The Life Science Research track will feature presentations on oncology, vaccines and expression profiling, and will include sessions led by the following:

Day Two will also feature a special presentation on Luminex’s FLEXMAP 3D(R) system from Dr. Schwenk, and will include a Scientific Poster Presenter Q&A reception, and a networking event at the Baltimore National Aquarium.

Day Three, Friday, May 14

Day three, Friday, May 14, will begin with a keynote address from Todd R. Golub, M.D., Director of the Broad Institute Cancer Program, titled, “Bead-based Approaches to Cancer Profiling.” Following Dr. Golub’s keynote address, there will be two separate tracks for Diagnostics and Life Science Research related topics.

The Diagnostics track will include sessions on molecular infectious diseases including respiratory viral testing, as well as phosphoprotein and serology diagnostics. Throughout this track, diagnostics sessions will be presented by the following:

The Life Science Research track will include presentations on immuno monitoring and signal transduction, as well as biodefense and agrobiotechnology. Life science research sessions will be presented by the following:

The three day symposium will conclude with the presentation of the Planet xMAP USA 2010 Scientific Poster Awards.

About the Keynote Speakers

James D. Watson, Ph.D. was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1962, after successfully proposing the double helical structure for DNA with Francis Crick, together with Maurice Wilkins, which has been described as the greatest achievement of science in the twentieth century. While a professor at Harvard University, Dr. Watson wrote several books, including Molecular Biology of the Gene, the best-selling autobiographical volume, The Double Helix, and most recently Avoid Boring People. Later, he led the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory as director, president and then chancellor, and was a driving force behind the foundation of the Human Genome Project. Dr. Watson has received numerous scientific honors including election to the National Academy of Sciences and the Medal of Freedom.

Linette Granen, MT (ASCP), DLM is the Corporate Relations Manager for the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL), which represents the state, local and county public health, environmental health and agricultural laboratories that protect the health and safety of the public. She is responsible for partnering with industry through the APHL Sustaining Member Program, since its inception in 2005. Having worked at APHL for the past 16 years, Ms. Granen also has served as Marketing Manager and Regional Manager for the National Laboratory Training Network, a joint program of APHL and CDC. Prior to working for APHL, Ms. Granen was the Program Manager for Diagnostic Laboratory Services and Herd Health for Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine. A licensed medical technologist and diplomate in laboratory management, she has served in laboratory technical and management roles in small hospitals, large medical centers and physician office laboratories.

Todd R. Golub, M.D. is Director of the Cancer Program at the Broad Institute, the Charles A. Dana Investigator in Human Cancer Genetics at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, an investigator at Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. He is the recipient of multiple awards, including the 2009 AACR Richard and Hinda Rosenthal Memorial Award, the 2008 E. Mead Johnson Award from the Society for Pediatric Research, the 2007 Oski Prize of the American Society of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, Discover Magazine’s Inventor of the Year (Health Category), the Daland Prize of the American Philosophical Society, the Outstanding Achievement Award for the American Association for Cancer Research, and the 2007 Paul Marks Prize for Cancer Research. Todd also serves on the Board of Scientific Advisors of the National Cancer Institute.

For additional information on Planet xMAP USA 2010, or to register online, please visit http://www.luminexcorp.com/planetxmap, or contact Dawn Fredericy at dawn@luminexcorp.com or 512.219.8020.

About Luminex Corporation

Luminex Corporation develops, manufactures and markets proprietary biological testing technologies with applications throughout the diagnostic and life sciences industries. The Company’s xMAP(R) multiplex solutions include an open-architecture, multi-analyte technology platform that delivers fast, accurate and cost-effective bioassay results to markets as diverse as pharmaceutical drug discovery, clinical diagnostics and biomedical research, including the genomics and proteomics markets. The Company’s xMAP technology is sold worldwide and is already in use in leading clinical laboratories as well as major pharmaceutical, diagnostic and biotechnology companies. Further information on Luminex Corporation or xMAP can be obtained at www.luminexcorp.com.

CONTACT: Corporate, Harriss T. Currie, Vice President, Finance and Chief
Financial Officer, hcurrie@luminexcorp.com, or Investors, Mimi L.
Torrington, Director, Investor Relations, mtorrington@luminexcorp.com, both
of Luminex Corporation, +1-512-219-8020; or Media, Nicole Cottrill,
+1-615-327-7999, ncottrill@seigenthaler.com, for Luminex Corporation

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

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