Quanterix and Sony DADC to Develop and Manufacture Smart Consumables for Life Science and In Vitro Diagnostic Applications

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. and SALZBURG, Austria, July 20, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Quanterix Corporation, enabling a new generation of diagnostic tests based on the revolutionary Single Molecule Array (SiMoA™) technology, and Sony DADC Austria AG, today announced that they have entered into a collaboration for the development and manufacture of "smart consumables" for use in the life science and in vitro diagnostic (IVD) markets. Production of the Quanterix SiMoA Disc marks the first diagnostic consumable whose assay technology is based on optical disc formats by Sony DADC. The manufacturing company uses proven high precision and high volume manufacturing processes, which it has pioneered for CD, DVD and Blu-ray Disc.

Quanterix plans to develop and manufacture a fully automated instrument for its SiMoA technology, which will utilize these "smart consumables" to support a menu of diagnostic tests. Quanterix expects to launch the life science instrument and consumables in 2013, followed by an IVD platform to be commercialized in 2014.

"We selected Sony DADC as our consumables partner because they are the clear world leader in the micro structuring and manufacturing of high volume optical products," said Martin Madaus, Ph.D., Quanterix Executive Chairman. "Sony DADC's proven optical disc technology provides Quanterix with a consumable that meets the requirements of high sensitivity diagnostic testing both today and into the future. Partnering with Sony DADC on the SiMoA Disc is a major milestone toward our objective of delivering high quality and cost effective solutions to the clinical diagnostics and life science markets."

"Sony DADC is pleased to collaborate with Quanterix to further advance the application of smart consumables in single molecule diagnostics and expand our OEM business in the life sciences and diagnostics markets," said Harald Kraushaar, Ph.D., VP Business Development BioSciences at Sony DADC. "Sony DADC's ISO13485 environment, Design for Manufacturing competence, polymer manufacturing and industrial scale production capabilities are well aligned with Quanterix's requirements to economically supply these optical array consumables at the highest quality for their markets."

About Quanterix

Quanterix Corporation is developing its proprietary Single Molecule Array (SiMoA™) technology for the in vitro diagnostics and life science research markets. The digital nature of SiMoA yields unprecedented assay performance, stemming from a 1,000-fold improvement in sensitivity compared with current technology. SiMoA will enable researchers in life science to validate novel, low abundance biomarkers from a single droplet of blood, leading to greater insight into disease detection, diagnosis, therapy selection and disease monitoring. Automated systems based on SiMoA are being developed to provide the most sensitive and precise diagnostic test information to researchers and clinicians with greater reliability, dynamic range, speed and increased cost effectiveness.  Founded in 2007, the privately held Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company is backed by leading life science investors including ARCH Venture Partners, Bain Capital Ventures, and Flagship Ventures.  For additional information, please visit www.quanterix.com

About Sony DADC

Sony DADC is a leading disc and digital service provider for the entertainment, education and information industries, offering world-class digital and physical supply chain solutions and software services. Building on the company's experience in high-precision manufacturing, its mass production capability and supply chain expertise, Sony DADC's BioSciences division partners with Life Sciences, Medical Technologies and Diagnostics companies enabling the industrial manufacturing of smart consumables.

Sony DADC's global set-up comprises production sites, distribution hubs, digital & service facilities in 19 countries worldwide, including Japan, the US and Europe. For more information please visit www.sonydadc.com  

SOURCE Quanterix Corporation