AUSTIN, Texas & HONG KONG–Luminex Corporation (NASDAQ: LMNX – News), the worldwide leader in multiplexed solutions, and Mingyuan Medicare Development Company, a leading supplier of biomedical products in China, today announced the signing of a distribution and supply agreement. Under the terms of the agreement, Mingyuan will serve as the exclusive distributor in China and Hong Kong of a series of newborn screening products being developed for the diagnosis of genetic disorders.

“Accurate and efficient newborn screening is essential to good pediatric care,” said Chien Hoe Yong, Henry, CEO and Executive Director of Mingyuan. “With Luminex’s xMAP® Technology, we can quickly and precisely screen infants for many genetic disorders at once. The technology and new tests being developed will help us advance the accuracy and speed of newborn screening across China and Hong Kong.”

There are over 20 million babies born in China each year, and newborn screening of genetic disorders is mandated by the Chinese government. Genetic disorders such as phenylketonuria (PKU), congenital hypothyroidism (CH), congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency affect the development of thousands of newborns each year in China. If these disorders are not detected and treated early, the affected newborns may experience significant cognitive development delays and ongoing health complications.

The newborn screening tests to be distributed by Mingyuan will be developed by Luminex utilizing proprietary xMAP Technology. Instead of detecting each genetic disorder one at a time, Luminex’s proprietary multiplexing xMAP Technology can simultaneously analyze up to 100 unique assays within a single sample, making the large scale screening more efficient, accurate and less costly.

“When genetic disorders are detected in infants early, doctors can monitor the children for health complications and begin treatments quickly. This prevents health and development complications and potentially improves an infant’s quality of life,” said Douglas Bryant, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Luminex. “We are excited to work with Mingyuan to bring novel newborn screening products to China and Hong Kong and contribute to the well being of the children in these nations.”

Mingyuan also will distribute Luminex analyzers in China and Hong Kong.