GenturaDx Announces Formation of Scientific Advisory Board

HAYWARD, Calif., Nov. 22, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Molecular diagnostics company GenturaDx announced the creation of its scientific advisory board with the appointment of three initial members: Dr. Keith Jerome, M.D., Ph.D., Dr. Steven Miller, M.D., Ph.D., and Dr. Gregory Tsongalis, Ph.D., H.C.L.D., F.A.C.B. The board will provide expert perspectives across science, laboratory medicine and the commercial market related to initial test development and future applications of the company's proprietary IDbox™. The IDbox system is set to begin clinical trials in 2012.

"We are honored to have attracted these renowned scientists and industry leaders who bring a broad perspective to our work and will lend their expertise enabling GenturaDx to bring its fully integrated platform into the clinical laboratory," said Geoff McKinley, Ph.D., Sr. VP of R&D.

Dr. Jerome is a widely published expert on herpes simplex virus (HSV) and viral infections more generally. He currently serves as the Director of the Molecular Virology Laboratory in the Department of Laboratory Medicine, and as Associate Professor in Laboratory Medicine at the University of Washington in Seattle, WA.  Dr. Jerome is an Associate Editor of Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Diseases and on the Editorial Advisory Board of the Journal of Infectious Diseases.

Dr. Miller is the Medical Director of the UCSF Clinical Microbiology Laboratory and is Assistant Professor in the Department of Laboratory Medicine at the University of California in San Francisco, CA.  His research focuses on the use of molecular methods for diagnosis and monitoring of infectious disease and the evaluation of clinical utility of new test methods, with resulting changes in patient management and improvements in patient care.

Dr. Tsongalis is a High Complexity Clinical Laboratory Director, a Fellow in the Academy of Clinical Biochemistry and serves as the Director of Molecular Pathology in the Department of Pathology at the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, NH. He also serves as Co-Director of the Pathology Translational Research Core Facility and Pharmacogenomics Program, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. Tsongalis is on the editorial board of Archives of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Journal of Clinical Virology, Journal of Molecular Diagnostics and Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine. His area of expertise is in clinical molecular diagnostic applications for genetic, hematologic, infectious and neoplastic diseases.

"The ability of GenturaDx to attract industry leaders like Drs. Jerome, Miller and Tsongalis, further validates GenturaDx's innovative technology and continual progress," said GenturaDx's CEO Mark Bagnall. "We are thrilled to call them our advisors."

About GenturaDx

GenturaDx is a molecular diagnostic company focused on making high-performance molecular diagnostics both affordable and practical for any laboratory to perform. The company is developing a fully integrated, automated instrument that conducts testing using a single-use cassette. This platform will make rapid, high-quality molecular diagnostics accessible to hospitals and patients worldwide – circumventing long-standing barriers of costs, automation and performance. GenturaDx's compact, self-contained platform incorporates sample preparation with proprietary, real-time PCR amplification and detection, reducing the risk of contamination and saving time. The platform's unique engineering design and intuitive interface relies on semi-batch processing capability while improving clinical value by offering multiple molecular targets in a single test. For more information, go to www.GenturaDx.com.

SOURCE GenturaDx