New partnership agreement with OGT promotes the use of Schott Nexterion's coated glass slides for the development of microarrays using novel electrochemical patterning methods
Oxford Gene Technology (OGT), a pioneer in the development of molecular tools for biologists, has signed a partnership agreement with Schott Nexterion to serve as a reference site for its glass substrates for oligonucleotide microarraying.
Schott Nexterion develops and markets a wide range of high quality coated and uncoated glass substrates for DNA and protein microarraying.
As a technology agent of OGT it is able to promote its slide products to other companies for the development and synthesis of oligonucleotide arrays.
The new partnership agreement with OGT promotes the use of Schott Nexterion's coated glass slides for the development of microarrays using novel electrochemical patterning methods.
Mike Evans, OGT's chief executive, said "OGT is delighted to be working with Schott Nexterion.
"It is a company that has an enviable position in the microarray arena for the design and supply of quality coated glass slides".
"Our partnership with OGT strengthens our company's research and development capabilities by combining our knowledge of surface chemistries and glass slides with OGT's expertise in the development of new array technologies to generate high quality oligonucleotide microarrays", said Lutz Wehmeier, Schott Nexterion's general manager.
"We believe that the combination of both partners' acknowledged core competencies will create significant synergies to advance microarray technologies to the next level".
Oxford Gene Technology (OGT) is a privately owned company founded in 1995 by Professor Sir Edwin Southern.
The mission of the company is to develop advanced molecular tools for biologists and to make them widely available through licensing and service activities.
The key business areas of OGT include licensing, which has successfully provided access for a number of companies to OGT's fundamental intellectual property, particularly in the area of microarrays; and a services business which provides a flexible and cost-effective customised DNA microarray service covering a range of applications and offers specialist support to assist customers with every aspect of their research.
Tridend is developing 'mass tags' to enhance the amount of information that researchers can generate from mass spectrometry experiments in proteomics and genomics.
Oxamer is generating novel array formats based on electrochemical deposition methods for use in life science and diagnostics.
OGT's intellectual property covers four general areas that are relevant to the biological sciences - these incorporate microarrays, genomics, proteomics, and electrochemistry.
Schott is an international technology-driven group that sees its core purpose as the lasting improvement of living and working conditions through special materials, components and high-tech solutions.
Its main areas of focus are the household appliances industry, optics and electronics, pharmaceuticals, and renewable energies.
Schott has a presence in close proximity to its customers through highly efficient production and sales companies in all its major markets.
It has 17,200 employees producing worldwide sales of two billion euros.
The company's technological and economic expertise is closely linked with its social and ecological responsibility.
The Schott Nexterion Microarray Solutions division is specialised in high quality microarray products.
As such, the company develops and markets a wide range of coated and uncoated glass substrates for DNA and protein microarraying under the Nexterion brand.
Schott Nexterion continuously expands its product portfolio and has several innovative products and services in the development pipeline, it says.
