Diagenode launches SX-8G IP-Star system for epigenetics

Feb 16 2010

Diagenode, an innovative leader providing products and technologies for epigenetics, genomics and diagnostics, and the only provider of complete epigenetics solutions, announced today the launch of its innovative platform for automated epigenetics assays, the SX-8G IP-Star™ system ("IP-Star™). The introduction follows the successful completion of six independent collaborations with high-profile research laboratories in the chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) and DNA methylation fields, who are using the Company's kits, antibodies and instrumentation in their research.

Didier Allaer, CEO noted, "After three years developing and optimizing the IP-Star for epigenetics, and six successful collaborations over the past year with key opinion leaders, we are delighted to introduce the best, most consistent, and most time-saving system for ChIP and DNA methylation studies."

Diagenode's automated system improves researchers' ability to perform reproducible, efficient and rapid epigenetics studies. The new product line includes automated magnetic bead-based ChIP and methylation kits, validated epigenetics antibodies, DNA purification kits, and the IP-Star, which together allow scientists to carry out ChIP or DNA methylation studies with fewer cells, substantially less manual labor, and more consistent results. Together with the popular BioruptorR sonicator, the IP-Star system allows Diagenode to offer a complete solution for the entire epigenetics workflow from sonication to immunoprecipitated DNA. The system is compatible with downstream assays such as qRT-PCR, ChIPseq, MBD-seq and MeDIP-seq. Over the past year, Diagenode's academic and biotech collaborators demonstrated that the automated system provides more consistent results with fewer cells, and removes the uncertainty from ChIP and methylation studies.

Dr. Peggy Farnham, Professor of Pharmacology and Associate Director of Genomics at the University of California at Davis, and Diagenode collaborator on ChIP explained, "The IP-Star has transformed the way we do histone ChIP by improving consistency and robustness. Now when a ChIP experiment fails we know it's not because of the assay. We routinely use the IP-Star for histone ChIP down to as few as 10,000 cells."

IP-Star methylation user, Dr. Henk Stunnenberg, Head of the Department of Molecular Biology at the Nijmegen Center for Molecular Life Sciences, added, "We have successfully completed an extensive pilot for a very large-scale automated MBD (methylCAP) study on primary cancer samples using Diagenode's IP-Star and kits. The system provided us with the consistency and throughput that would not have been possible with manual methylation studies."

The IP-Star launch comes at an important time for the field, given increased interest and exciting new research identifying broad, important roles for epigenetics (including changes in chromatin structure, histone modifications, DNA binding proteins, and DNA methylation) in cancer, genome-wide RNA regulation, development, differentiation, stem cells, diabetes, and other human diseases.