FREMONT, Calif. (AFX) - Ciphergen Biosystems Inc. and Ohio State University Research Foundation said Tuesday they agreed to develop and evaluate a diagnostic test to detect the blood disease TTP, or thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura.
'A clinical diagnostic test that can rapidly detect deficiencies in the enzyme activity associated with TTP will help physicians more effectively manage this devastating disease,' said Haifeng M. Wu, assistant professor of pathology and medicine at Ohio State University Medical Center. 'This test will help physicians determine when to initiate plasma exchange and monitor response to this therapy.'
Under the terms of the agreement, OSURF and Ciphergen will design the test to measure enzyme and antibody inhibition activity, and will jointly conduct multi-center studies to validate the test.
Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
TTP is a blood disorder characterized by low platelets, low red blood cell count, neurological abnormalities and sometimes abnormalities in kidney function. In most cases, this disease is caused by a deficiency in or auto-antibodies to an enzyme called ADAMTS13. Loss of this enzyme causes platelet clumping and red blood cell destruction.
Ciphergen shares fell 3 cents, or 2.7 percent, to $1.08 in midday trading on the Nasdaq.
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