Clearbridge BioMedics and Leica Biosystems to Co-market Automated Solutions for Circulating Tumor Cell (CTC) Analysis

SINGAPORE, Nov. 16, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Clearbridge BioMedics and Leica Biosystems have today announced a partnership, co-marketing each other's products to support circulating tumor cell (CTC) research. This is specifically for the Clearbridge BioMedics ClearCell^® FX CTC enrichment system and the Leica Biosystems' BOND RX staining platform. This new partnership provides an integrated and automated workflow for CTC enrichment and immunostaining, improving on major challenges in CTC liquid biopsy testing[1], such as handling and standardization.

The ClearCell^® FX System is an automated CTC enrichment system, powered by the patented CTChip^® FR1 microfluidics biochip. Using a label-free approach, the ClearCell^® FX System retrieves wholly-intact and viable CTCs from a standard blood draw. The gentle sorting principle retains high cell integrity and cell surface antigen expression. This coupled with single-step CTC retrieval, provides a seamless integration into pathology lab workflows.

Automated CTC staining on a glass slide is then performed on Leica Biosystems' BOND RX. The BOND RX platform is an open and flexible system that efficiently automates staining for immunofluorescence (IF), immunohistochemistry (IHC) and fluorescent in-situ hybridization (FISH) assays. It provides a high-throughput workflow with exceptional consistency and minimal hands-on time.

Linking these two advanced technologies will empower researchers and laboratories with an integrated solution for CTC enrichment and immunostaining, accelerating the development of clinical applications using CTCs.

"The global liquid biopsy market has been growing significantly and will continue to grow, due to trends such as rising prevalence of cancer, preference for personalized medicine and the move towards non-invasive procedures. Today's partnership announcement between Leica Biosystems and Clearbridge BioMedics provides clinical research laboratories with a seamless end-to-end enrichment and immunostaining solution for CTCs. This will support the development of new therapies and diagnostics for cancer patients," said Dr Michael Paumen, CEO of Clearbridge BioMedics.

"At LBS we strive to provide our customers with the most complete set of clinically relevant, emerging technologies on our Bond Rx platform. CTCs are of increasing interest to organizations involved in translational medicine, companion diagnostics and investigational research. Partnering with Clearbridge BioMedics to improve the ease-of-use when processing CTCs offers major steps forward in productivity and consistency. Creating automated workflows is a necessary precondition for wide spread adoption of CTCs as a sample type. We are very pleased to be partnering with Clearbridge BioMedics in a manner that leverages our respective strengths in cell processing and immunostaining," said Colin White, Phd Global Vice President Advanced Staining at Leica Biosystems.

About Clearbridge BioMedics

Clearbridge BioMedics Pte Ltd. is a clinical stage cancer diagnostics company that develops and manufactures liquid biopsy systems. Clearbridge BioMedics is based in Singapore and has commercially launched the ClearCell FX platform to laboratories around the globe. Clearbridge BioMedics has won numerous awards and garnered global recognition for its novel Circulating Tumor Cell (CTC) detection platform technology, the ClearCell^® FX System. The ClearCell^® FX System and its biochip are utilizing state-of-the-art, non-invasive liquid biopsy to analyze blood samples for circulating tumor cells (CTCs). The device allows for real time analysis of disease before, during, and after treatment, which has become increasingly critical in the new era of targeted cancer therapies. Clearbridge BioMedics has received ISO 13485 certification in 2011 and the ClearCell^® FX System attained CE IVD in 2015.  For more information, visit www.ClearbridgeBioMedics.com.

About Leica Biosystems

Leica Biosystems is a global leader in workflow solutions and automation, striving to advance cancer diagnostics to improve patients' lives. Leica Biosystems provides anatomical pathology laboratories and researchers a comprehensive product range for each step in the pathology process, from sample preparation and staining to imaging and reporting. Leica's easy-to-use and consistently reliable offerings help improve workflow efficiency and diagnostic confidence. The company is represented in over 100 countries. It has manufacturing facilities in 7 countries, sales and service organizations in 19 countries, and an international network of dealers. The company is headquartered in Nussloch, Germany. Further information can be found at www.LeicaBiosystems.com.

Note: [1] This solution is for research use only and is not for diagnostic applications.