Post by icemandios on Sept 14, 2022 12:32:20 GMT
OraSure Partners with Mars Petcare in One of the Largest Ever Microbiome Studies to Evaluate Pet Health
BETHLEHEM, Pa., Sept. 14, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- OraSure Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: OSUR), a global leader in point-of-care and home diagnostic testing and sample collection technologies, announced today a new collaboration between Diversigen, Inc., a subsidiary of OraSure Technologies, and Mars Petcare, which will help researchers better understand pet health. As part of the MARS PETCARE BIOBANK ™ project, Diversigen will sequence microbiome samples from cats and dogs of all breeds and breed makeups in efforts to improve pet care.
“This collaboration will utilize Diversigen’s specialized metagenomics service that uses curated databases to improve sample analysis,” said Kathleen Weber, President of Molecular Solutions for OraSure Technologies. “Our team of expert scientists and bioinformaticians will help researchers involved in the project improve the understanding of canine and feline microbial community composition and function.”
Samples collected as part of the biobank study will be analyzed and Diversigen will sequence the DNA of the microorganisms in the sample. Using those results in conjunction with other data, Mars Petcare scientists will then generate insights about what cat and dog microbiomes look like over time, including on health and disease.
“Diversigen’s unique capabilities to evaluate the microbiome with precision and consistency made them an ideal partner for this study,” said Darren Logan, Head of Research at Mars Petcare’s Waltham Petcare Science Institute. “We believe this type of research will ultimately play an important part in scientific discovery aimed at improving pet health.”
About OraSure Technologies
OraSure Technologies empowers the global community to improve health and wellness by providing access to accurate, essential information. OraSure, together with its wholly-owned subsidiaries, DNA Genotek, Diversigen, and Novosanis, provides its customers with end-to-end solutions that encompass tools, services and diagnostics. The OraSure family of companies is a leader in the development, manufacture, and distribution of rapid diagnostic tests, sample collection and stabilization devices, and molecular services solutions designed to discover and detect critical medical conditions. OraSure’s portfolio of products is sold globally to clinical laboratories, hospitals, physician’s offices, clinics, public health and community-based organizations, research institutions, government agencies, pharma, commercial entities and direct to consumers. For more information on OraSure Technologies, please visit www.orasure.com .
About Diversigen
Diversigen, Inc. is a subsidiary of OraSure Technologies, and provides consultative end-to-end solutions for extraction, sequencing, bioinformatics, and statistical analysis for the study of the microbiome of living organisms and environments. Diversigen operates a state-of-the-art CLIA and CAP accredited laboratory deploying a variety of techniques to extract high quality nucleic acids from a multitude of sample types for subsequent metagenomics analysis. Diversigen’s flexible sequencing and computing capacity, combined with ongoing improvements in analytic tools and their applications, allows for customized project-specific strategies. For more information, visit www.diversigen.com or contact [email protected] .
BETHLEHEM, Pa., Sept. 14, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- OraSure Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: OSUR), a global leader in point-of-care and home diagnostic testing and sample collection technologies, announced today a new collaboration between Diversigen, Inc., a subsidiary of OraSure Technologies, and Mars Petcare, which will help researchers better understand pet health. As part of the MARS PETCARE BIOBANK ™ project, Diversigen will sequence microbiome samples from cats and dogs of all breeds and breed makeups in efforts to improve pet care.
“This collaboration will utilize Diversigen’s specialized metagenomics service that uses curated databases to improve sample analysis,” said Kathleen Weber, President of Molecular Solutions for OraSure Technologies. “Our team of expert scientists and bioinformaticians will help researchers involved in the project improve the understanding of canine and feline microbial community composition and function.”
Samples collected as part of the biobank study will be analyzed and Diversigen will sequence the DNA of the microorganisms in the sample. Using those results in conjunction with other data, Mars Petcare scientists will then generate insights about what cat and dog microbiomes look like over time, including on health and disease.
“Diversigen’s unique capabilities to evaluate the microbiome with precision and consistency made them an ideal partner for this study,” said Darren Logan, Head of Research at Mars Petcare’s Waltham Petcare Science Institute. “We believe this type of research will ultimately play an important part in scientific discovery aimed at improving pet health.”
About OraSure Technologies
OraSure Technologies empowers the global community to improve health and wellness by providing access to accurate, essential information. OraSure, together with its wholly-owned subsidiaries, DNA Genotek, Diversigen, and Novosanis, provides its customers with end-to-end solutions that encompass tools, services and diagnostics. The OraSure family of companies is a leader in the development, manufacture, and distribution of rapid diagnostic tests, sample collection and stabilization devices, and molecular services solutions designed to discover and detect critical medical conditions. OraSure’s portfolio of products is sold globally to clinical laboratories, hospitals, physician’s offices, clinics, public health and community-based organizations, research institutions, government agencies, pharma, commercial entities and direct to consumers. For more information on OraSure Technologies, please visit www.orasure.com .
About Diversigen
Diversigen, Inc. is a subsidiary of OraSure Technologies, and provides consultative end-to-end solutions for extraction, sequencing, bioinformatics, and statistical analysis for the study of the microbiome of living organisms and environments. Diversigen operates a state-of-the-art CLIA and CAP accredited laboratory deploying a variety of techniques to extract high quality nucleic acids from a multitude of sample types for subsequent metagenomics analysis. Diversigen’s flexible sequencing and computing capacity, combined with ongoing improvements in analytic tools and their applications, allows for customized project-specific strategies. For more information, visit www.diversigen.com or contact [email protected] .