EraGen collaborates with Emory University on HIV detection system

MADISON - EraGen Biosciences, a Madison-based life science company, announced Monday they have entered into a collaboration agreement with Emory University to develop a quantitative genotyping system useful in the early detection of the HIV variants. The partnership is supported by an NIH STTR grant.

The goal of the collaboration will be to develop the world’s first quantitative genotyping system for early response to therapeutic resistance. As part of the agreement EraGen will provide Emory with sensitive mixed population quantitative genotyping systems for HIV. In turn, Emory will provide expertise and testing results.

“We believe that early HIV quantitative drug resistance monitoring is not only important for therapeutic development, but will also become the norm for clinical testing,” said James Prudent, chief science officer at EraGen. According to Prudent, the funding supports EraGen’s developmental costs for a number of tests, allowing the company to build on prototype systems already developed for quantitative resistance screening to the HIV therapeutics.

“EraGen has brought us a tool that will greatly accelerate our research into HIV drug resistance since the mutation rates can be quantitatively detected at an early stage allowing physicians to optimize treatment before the virus is fully drug-resistant,” said Professor Raymond Schinazi, the inventor of Emtriva and other HIV drugs. “We expect the technology will also be useful in our other drug resistance studies on HBV and HCV for example.”