Contact Information: Contacts: Kevin Krenitsky Chief Executive Officer BioServe 301-470-3362 Constantine Theodoropulos Boston Communications 617-292-7319
BioServe Selected by the Fairbanks Institute for Indiana Health Study
Novel Community-Based Longitudinal Study of Coronary Artery Disease to Help Produce New Drugs and Diagnostics
| Source: BioServe
BELTSVILLE, MD--(Marketwire - August 11, 2008) - BioServe today announced that it has been
selected by the Fairbanks Institute for Healthy Communities to process all
biological samples from the Indiana Health Study, a new landmark
longitudinal study of coronary artery disease. The Indiana Health Study is
a community-based research initiative using the population of Indianapolis
and surrounding areas as study participants to create a research platform
that will lead to the development of new drugs and diagnostics for chronic
diseases such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes.
Coronary artery disease is the leading cause of death in the nation and
claims the lives of more than 340,000 Hoosiers each year. The Indiana
Health Study gives the community a chance to participate in the improvement
of their own health.
Sponsored by the Fairbanks Institute for Healthy Communities, an
Indianapolis-based nonprofit organization, the Indiana Health Study will
create one of the nation's most comprehensive resources for academic and
commercial research by integrating Indiana-sourced biological samples such
as serum, DNA, plasma and RNA, along with medical data and lifestyle
information collected from two cohorts of people: patients with coronary
artery disease and people without the disease. The Indiana Health Study
takes advantage of the internationally recognized health informatics
capabilities of the Regenstrief Institute at Indiana University.
Retrospective and prospective medical information will be collected on
study participants via the Regenstrief Medical Records System, one of the
nation's first electronic medical record systems.
"The Fairbanks Institute is committed to collecting, processing and storing
all biological samples for this study under conditions that produce the
highest quality samples," stated Dr. Cynthia Helphingstine, President and
COO. "We chose BioServe as our partner for the processing of our biological
samples based on their proven ability to process biological samples at the
level of quality required in discovery research today.
"BioServe's experience with processing many different types of biological
materials using standardized protocols in a CLIA-certified laboratory is
essential to providing researchers with samples that are of the quality
necessary to disentangle the genetic, lifestyle and environmental
determinants of chronic disease."
Dr. Kevin Krenitsky, Chief Executive Officer of BioServe, stated, "The
Fairbanks Institute is at the cutting edge of a growing effort to provide
medical researchers with biological samples connected to detailed
longitudinal clinical information for many types of research studies. We
are excited to play an integral role in this novel health study and
contribute to the ability of researchers to develop new diagnostics and
drugs that will improve the clinical management of chronic diseases such as
cancer, heart disease and diabetes."
Indianapolis is an ideal site for gathering robust health information for
community-based research. It is a diverse community, which is
representative of the national census, a health-challenged population
(ranking high on national lists for cardiovascular disease, cancer,
diabetes and other illnesses) and has a stable residency making subject
follow up possible. In addition, the population's health challenges have
been studied and well documented since the early 1970s through the
Regenstrief Institute.
About Fairbanks Institute for Healthy Communities
Formed with a $10 million gift from the Richard M. Fairbanks Foundation and
the collaboration of BioCrossroads, Indiana University School of Medicine,
Regenstrief Institute and other Indianapolis community health leaders,
Fairbanks Institute is creating one of the nation's most comprehensive
resources for finding better ways to prevent, diagnose and treat the
nation's most common, chronic diseases. Through the Indiana Health Study,
the Fairbanks Institute is assembling and maintaining a collection of
biological samples and linked clinical and disease-specific information
collected from the population of Indianapolis for academic and commercial
research use.
About BioServe
BioServe is a leader in the processing, development, and validation of
diagnostic tests for the practice of personalized, predictive and
preventive medicine. Leading pharma, biotech and diagnostic firms
collaborate with BioServe to identify and validate markers that cause
disease while correlating clinical and molecular data to develop new
diagnostic tests promoting wellness around the world. BioServe offers the
Global Repository®, a growing library of over 600,000 human DNA, tissue
and serum samples linked to detailed clinical and demographic data from
140,000 consented and anonymized patients from four continents. Leveraging
BioServe's robust genomic analytical services, technology, Global
Repository and CLIA-certified laboratory, collaborators gain a complete,
highly efficient platform for processing diagnostic test results and
identifying genomic markers for powerful new assays. BioServe has
headquarters in Beltsville, MD and Hyderabad, India. For more information
please visit www.bioserve.com or call 301-470-3362.