BioSource Test Kits Use Genes to Track Disorders

BioSource International, a Camarillo-based supplier of immunological reagents and test kits used in biomedical research, last week introduced a line of products that could help measure the presence of certain genes in people with infectious diseases.

The new Genexpress line of test kits, the first half-dozen of which were presented at a trade show in San Francisco last week, will be used to help determine gene sequences in DNA derived from blood cells, bone marrow or other laboratory samples.

By determining gene sequences, researchers are better able to detect gene disorders and monitor the progression of diseases.

Down the road, the company plans to introduce Genexpress products into doctors’ offices and other clinical settings, to help determine the presence and level of viral infections, said Jim Chamberlain, chairman, BioSource president and chief executive.

BioSource is collaborating with West Virginia University on a project to use the Genexpress kits to test the amount of breast cancer genes remaining in a patient after treatment for the disease.

“We want to be able to measure how many cells are in existence and try to tie that number to the recurrence of a disease,” Chamberlain said.

He said that with the Genexpress products, BioSource opens up a new market.

“We’d like to be able to have close to 20 research kits out by the end of the year. Many of those will probably wind up coming out in the third or fourth quarter, but there will be a steady stream throughout the year,” he said. “And we hope to get into something more geared to the clinical area. When you start getting into the clinical-area markets, it gets very big.”

In addition to test kits, BioSource manufactures DNA segments--portions of genes created synthetically, which are incorporated into the test kits to manufacture proteins.