Altogen Labs (www.altogenlabs.com), a biology contract research organization and provider of pre-clinical research services, announced its launch of a pyrosequencing service today. Based on the new PyroMark platform, the pyrosequencing service is a multi-application genetic analysis tool that provides sequence information directly from a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) product.

The PyroMark platform uses the latest sequencing by synthesis technology and is capable of delivering high accuracy sequence information within minutes, making it an ideal choice for genetic analysis in clinical research. With an emphasis on flexibility, expert experimental project design, and advanced data analysis, the new pyrosequencing service takes advantage of in-house pyrosequencing and bioinformatics experience to provide the most complete targeted pyrosequencing solution available.

Altogen Labs provides pyrosequencing services to diagnostic laboratories, hospitals, and research institutions (www.altogenlabs.com/pyrosequencing.htm). A number of validated clinical assays are available for diagnosis of genetic diseases such as Prader-Willi/Angelman syndromes, adult hypolactasia, and multiple polymorphisms in the APOE gene, as well as tests to characterize the complex cancer mutations involved in multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2.

A unique feature of pyrosequencing technology is its capability to quantify DNA methylation, as used in quantification of methylation frequencies for consecutive CpG sites. Quantification of DNA methylation can be done at each CpG site or at regional methylation levels (www.pyro-sequencing.com). High-quality sequence analysis of CpG methylation was recently recognized as important in cancer research: scientists using pyrosequencing technology were able to distinguish tumor-specific methylation for multiple cancer associated genes including p16, MGMT, and CYGB.

Altogen Labs offers targeted detection and characterization of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), quantification of alleles and determination of heterozygosity, genotyping, and mutation analysis (www.altogen.com/pyrosequencing.php). Microbiology applications include identification of various microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi, viruses, individual microbial species, and drug resistant strains. Using pyrosequencing technology, Altogen Labs has established assays to determine SNPs, assay regions of multiple sequence variation in SNPs, detect insertion and deletion mutations, and short tandem repeats.

About Altogen Labs

Altogen Labs (www.altogenlabs.com) is a life sciences company dedicated to providing pre-clinical research services to pharmaceutical and biotechnology organizations worldwide. Specialized contract research organization services include RNAi services, cell banking (MCB and WCB), generation of stable cell lines, assay development, cloning, siRNA encapsulation and transfection services. The company has developed a product line of in vivo transfection systems (www.altogen.com/mirna.php) for targeted in vivo delivery of therapeutic biomolecules (DNA, RNA, and proteins).