ST. PAUL, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CoreBiome, a microbiome discovery services provider and wholly-owned subsidiary of OraSure Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: OSUR), announced today that Rob Knight, Professor and Director of the Center for Microbiome Innovation at the University of California San Diego, has joined its scientific advisory board.
As an investigator on the National Institutes of Health Human Microbiome Project and a co-founder of the American Gut Project, Dr. Knight is one of the world’s leading microbiome researchers. Dr. Knight’s research tools have played a major role in the development of microbiome science. His research has been published in over 500 peer-reviewed research articles that collectively have been cited over 150,000 times.
“We are thrilled to have Rob Knight joining CoreBiome as a scientific advisor. Rob has pioneered many of the foundational tools that microbiome science is built upon,” says CoreBiome CEO Dan Knights. “Rob has been a key investigator on many breakthrough clinical discoveries, and has a great sense of where the current and future needs are for microbiome scientists.”
Dr. Knight’s unique position as an expert in both computational and molecular biology will allow him to advise CoreBiome on opportunities for innovation at the bench and in the cloud. Ongoing tool development at CoreBiome and its sister company DNA Genotek will help customers gain insight into the function activity and byproducts of the microbiome.
Dr. Knight said of his appointment, “I believe it’s extremely important to the whole microbiome field to give all investigators access to high-resolution microbiome data and data mining at a massive scale. I am very excited to be a part of ongoing efforts to make that happen.”
With the launch of BoosterShot™, CoreBiome has led the field in making high-resolution metagenomic DNA sequencing accessible to population-scale studies. In 2019, CoreBiome was acquired by OraSure Technologies, which also owns DNA Genotek, a leading provider of sampling and stabilization kits, bringing together an end-to-end solution for robust microbiome discovery – from sample collection to sequencing to custom data mining. CoreBiome also provides ultra-high-throughput deep shotgun metagenomics and strain discovery.
“Having Rob as an advisor will support CoreBiome’s mission, to accelerate discovery for the whole field by giving our customers access to big data and good data at the same time,” said CoreBiome Data Science Manager Tonya Ward. “It’s not just about generating a ton of data. The data have to be high quality, and you also have to know what to do with the data once you get it. We help customers do all of the above.”
About CoreBiome:
CoreBiome is a microbiome genomics company
focused on accelerating microbiome discovery for customers in the
pharmaceutical, agriculture, and research communities, to unleash the
translational potential of the microbiome. The company’s proprietary
BenchMark™, BoosterShot™, and Core Analysis™ platforms provide fast and
information-rich characterizations of microbial diversity and function,
paired with machine learning and expert analytics. CoreBiome is a
wholly-owned subsidiary of OraSure Technologies, Inc., which also owns
DNA Genotek, a leading provider of sampling and stabilization kits. For
more information about CoreBiome, visit http://www.corebiome.com.
About OraSure Technologies:
OraSure Technologies is a leader
in the development, manufacture and distribution of point-of-care
diagnostic and collection devices and other technologies designed to
detect or diagnose critical medical conditions. Its first-to-market,
innovative products include rapid tests for the detection of antibodies
to HIV and HCV on the OraQuick® platform, oral fluid sample collection,
stabilization and preparation products for molecular diagnostic
applications, and oral fluid laboratory tests for detecting various
drugs of abuse. OraSure’s portfolio of products is sold globally to
various clinical laboratories, hospitals, clinics, community-based
organizations and other public health organizations, research and
academic institutions, distributors, government agencies, physicians’
offices, commercial and industrial entities and consumers. The Company’s
products enable healthcare providers to deliver critical information to
patients, empowering them to make decisions to improve and protect their
health.
Important Information
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or results. Known and unknown factors that could cause actual performance or results to be materially different from those expressed or implied in these statements include, but are not limited to: ability to successfully manage and integrate the acquisitions in a manner that complements or leverages our existing business, or otherwise expands or enhances our portfolio of products and our end-to-end service offerings, and the diversion of management's attention from our ongoing business and regular business responsibilities to effect such integration; failure to realize the expected economic benefits of the acquisitions (and increased returns for our stockholders), including that the anticipated synergies, revenue enhancement strategies and other benefits from the acquisitions may not be fully realized or may take longer to realize than expected or that our actual integration costs may exceed our estimates; ability to market and sell products, whether through our internal, direct sales force or third parties; ability to manufacture products in accordance with applicable specifications, performance standards and quality requirements; ability to obtain, and timing and cost of obtaining, necessary regulatory approvals for new products or new indications or applications for existing products; ability to comply with applicable regulatory requirements; ability to effectively resolve warning letters, audit observations and other findings or comments from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) or other regulators; changes in relationships, including disputes or disagreements, with strategic partners or other parties and reliance on strategic partners for the performance of critical activities under collaborative arrangements; ability to meet increased demand for the Company’s products; impact of significant customer concentration in the genomics business; impact of increased reliance on U.S. government contracts; failure of distributors or other customers to meet purchase forecasts, historic purchase levels or minimum purchase requirements for our products; impact of replacing distributors; inventory levels at distributors and other customers; ability of the Company to achieve its financial and strategic objectives and continue to increase its revenues, including the ability to expand international sales; ability to identify, complete, integrate and realize the full benefits of future acquisitions; impact of competitors, competing products and technology changes; impact of negative economic conditions; reduction or deferral of public or other funding available to customers; competition from new or better technology or lower cost products; ability to develop, commercialize and market new products; market acceptance of oral fluid or urine testing, collection or other products; market acceptance and uptake of microbiome informatics, microbial genetics technology and related analytics services; changes in market acceptance of products based on product performance or other factors, including changes in testing guidelines, algorithms or other recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) or other agencies; ability to fund research and development and other products and operations; ability to obtain and maintain new or existing product distribution channels; reliance on sole supply sources for critical products and components; availability of related products produced by third parties or products required for use of our products; ability to maintain sustained profitability; ability to utilize net operating loss carry forwards or other deferred tax assets; volatility of the Company’s stock price; uncertainty relating to patent protection and potential patent infringement claims; uncertainty and costs of litigation relating to patents and other intellectual property; availability of licenses to patents or other technology; ability to enter into international manufacturing agreements; obstacles to international marketing and manufacturing of products; ability to sell products internationally, including the impact of changes in international funding sources and testing algorithms; adverse movements in foreign currency exchange rates; loss or impairment of sources of capital; ability to meet financial covenants in credit agreements; ability to attract and retain qualified personnel; exposure to product liability and other types of litigation; changes in international, federal or state laws and regulations; customer consolidations and inventory practices; equipment failures and ability to obtain needed raw materials and components; the impact of terrorist attacks and civil unrest; and general political, business and economic conditions. These and other factors that could affect our results are discussed more fully in the Company’s Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) filings, including our registration statements, Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and other filings with the SEC. Although forward-looking statements help to provide information about future prospects, readers should keep in mind that forward-looking statements may not be reliable. The forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this press release and OraSure Technologies undertakes no duty to update these statements.