Epitome Biosystems to Develop Biomarker Assay Panels for Bristol-Myers Squibb

WALTHAM, Mass., Jan. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- Epitome Biosystems announced today that it has signed a technology access and product development agreement with Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) for use of Epitome's proprietary EpiTag(TM) protein measurement platform. Epitome will develop custom antibody arrays for quantitative and high throughput measurement of proteins specified by Bristol-Myers Squibb to accelerate introduction of newly discovered biomarkers into clinical development programs. Under the terms of the agreement Epitome will receive development funding and license fees from Bristol-Myers Squibb.

Epitome's EpiTag technology uses an in silico approach to identify unique peptide tags for any protein based solely on sequence information. Antibodies raised against the tags have predetermined specificity since the tag sequence appears only once in the proteome. Measurement in the resulting assay system is made on the peptide fragment released from the protein by digestion rather than on the whole protein. This approach results in a system that is scaleable to any protein in the proteome and allows for efficient development of multiplex protein assays for newly discovered biomarkers.

Neal Gordon, Ph.D., President of Epitome, stated, "The recognition by Bristol-Myers Squibb that our technology addresses a need in moving from biomarker discovery to clinical implementation is extremely gratifying. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a strong history of successful drug development and we are very pleased to be working with them."

About Epitome Biosystems

Epitome Biosystems is a pioneer in the development of a new breed of protein measurement tools. Its proprietary EpiTag(TM) technology delivers highly specific antibodies and assay standards for quantitation of any protein based solely on sequence. These reagents easily interface with any measurement system including bead based and planar array platforms and are particularly useful in developing micro-scale immunoassays. Epitome Biosystems is backed by funding from Flagship Ventures and Vinod Khosla, with offices in Waltham, MA. For more information, visit http://www.epitomebiosystems.com.