Integrated Diagnostics launched to develop diagnostic tools and innovative biomarkers

Oct 14 2009

Integrated Diagnostics launched officially today with more than $30 million in funding. A pre-eminent team of scientists and investors are behind the company, which was founded by renowned biotechnology innovator Dr. Leroy Hood. Integrated Diagnostics will focus on developing personalized and preventive diagnostics based on breakthroughs using genomic and proteomic technologies to identify organ-specific proteins. The company will be developing diagnostic tools to help patients and physicians detect disease in its earliest stages. Building on research from Dr. Hood, Dr. Jim Heath and other leading scientists, Integrated Diagnostics is creating powerful diagnostic tools and innovative biomarkers that will help define the coming transition to health care that is predictive, preventive, personalized and participatory.

"Just as the DNA sequencer allowed us to decode the human genome, the technology behind Integrated Diagnostics will allow us unprecedented insight into preventing and treating diseases like cancer, diabetes and Alzheimer's by analyzing the proteins that appear in their earliest stages," said Dr. Hood, current president of The Institute for Systems Biology (ISB); and inventor of the DNA sequencer, which played a crucial role in the mapping of the human genome. "I have had the good fortune to found several successful biotechnology companies. I believe Integrated Diagnostics will prove to be among the most significant. By taking a systems approach to monitoring an individual's health we will be able to provide physicians and patients an early warning system for preventing and treating diseases."

Integrated Diagnostics will have access to Dr. Hood's groundbreaking research at ISB investigating protein blood markers that can report on the physiological state of the body's 50 major organs. His research uses genomic and proteomic techniques to identify blood proteins that are only synthesized in the organ of interest and then identifies subtle changes that result from disease or treatment. By monitoring concentrations of these proteins in the blood, disruptions in healthy function can be detected and traced back to the diseased organ. This work is based on the concept of a systems view of disease where pathophysiology arises from disease-perturbed networks of proteins, genes, and other molecules.

Through its research collaborations, Integrated Diagnostics possesses proprietary data on organ-specific proteins across a range of human organs. These protein panels are applicable to many diagnostic modalities including early detection of disease, stratification of disease types, and monitoring disease progression and recurrence. The company's technology is applicable to a broad scope of diseases, including cancer, diabetes and Alzheimer's disease.

"Integrated Diagnostic's research enabling technologies will allow us to cut in half the standard development times for diagnostics," said Dr. Hood. "In addition, the company's technologies will ultimately permit the rapid analysis of blood biomarkers from just a fraction of a droplet of blood, at a cost of less than one dollar per protein measured."