Watch the webinar: Manish Arora, PhD, Founder, CEO and CSO at Linus Bio, speaks at the Institute for Exposomic Research at Mount Sinai.
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Manish Arora, PHD, Co-Founder of Linus Biotechnology speaks at HITLAB 2021 Innovator’s Summit Presentation
Linus Biotechnology Inc. Receives FDA Breakthrough Device Designation for StrandDx™-ASD Exposome Sequencing Diagnostic
NEW YORK, Dec. 7, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Linus Biotechnology Inc., a leader in precision exposome sequencing, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Devices and Radiological Health has granted the Company’s StrandDx™-ASD diagnostic aid the designation as a Breakthrough Device for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
The FDA Breakthrough Device designation aims to expedite the review of innovative technologies that provide for more effective treatment or diagnosis of life-threatening or irreversibly debilitating diseases or conditions. Diagnosing ASD can be difficult because there is no FDA-approved molecular biomarker, like a blood test, to identify the disorder. Current ASD diagnosis relies on behavioral observation and it is usually diagnosed at approximately 4 years of age by an experienced professional. However, many children receive a final diagnosis at a much later age and do not receive the benefits of early intervention.
StrandDx™-ASD is based on novel molecular biomarkers developed using Linus Biotechnology’s proprietary exposome and biological response sequencing platform, utilizing a single strand of hair. According to the Breakthrough Device designation label, the intended use of StrandDx™-ASD will extend to patients from birth to 21 years, where the test will assess the likelihood of ASD in children from birth to 18 months old, and aid in diagnosis of ASD in patients aged 18 months to 21 years.
“Now for the first time in the history of medicine we have the prospect that, by studying a single strand of hair, physicians, patients, families and scientists can get the physiological equivalent of a blood-test for autism,” said Dr. Neil Kurtz, MD, physician, psychiatrist and neurologist, and an advisor and director of the Company.
“As our first precision exposome diagnostic, StrandDx™-ASD is being developed to help guide patient care for ASD, a disorder that now affects 1 in 44 children in the U.S. Molecular biomarkers, like StrandDx™-ASD, are a major step forward in precision medicine for autism and illustrate the potential to deploy individualized early intervention,” said Manish Arora, PhD, BDS, MPH, Edith J. Baerwald Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of the Company. “This designation is a major milestone for Linus Biotechnology Inc. We look forward to working closely with the FDA to prioritize development of StrandDx™-ASD and moving it forward toward commercialization,” added Dr. Arora.
The Precision Exposome Sequencing Platform described is based on technology developed by Dr. Manish Arora and other faculty members at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and licensed to Linus Biotechnology Inc. Mount Sinai and Mount Sinai researchers, including Manish Arora, have a financial interest in Linus Biotechnology Inc.
About Linus Biotechnology Inc.
Linus Biotechnology is a patient-centric, breakthrough science precision exposome medicine company headquartered in New York, NY. The Company’s program pipeline comprises precision exposome medicine biomarkers and target discovery across disease domains for which historically no molecular endpoints have been available in medical practice or for clinical trials, including CNS (autism spectrum disorder, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), gastroenterology (inflammatory bowel disease), renal disease and oncology. For more information, visit www.linusbio.com.
About the Mount Sinai Health System
The Mount Sinai Health System is New York City’s largest academic medical system, encompassing eight hospitals, a leading medical school, and a vast network of ambulatory practices throughout the greater New York region. We advance medicine and health through unrivaled education and translational research and discovery to deliver care that is the safest, highest-quality, most accessible and equitable, and the best value of any health system in the nation. The Health System includes approximately 7,300 primary and specialty care physicians; 13 free-standing joint-venture centers; more than 410 ambulatory practices throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, and Long Island; and more than 30 affiliated community health centers. The Mount Sinai Hospital is ranked in U.S. News & World Report’s “Honor Roll” of the top 20 U.S. hospitals and among the top in the nation by specialty: No. 1 in Geriatrics and top 20 in Cardiology/Heart Surgery, Diabetes/Endocrinology, Gastroenterology/GI Surgery, Neurology/Neurosurgery, Orthopedics, Pulmonology/Lung Surgery, Urology, and Rehabilitation. Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital is ranked in U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Children’s Hospitals” among the country’s best in four out of 10 pediatric specialties. New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai is ranked among the Top 20 nationally for ophthalmology. The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is one of three medical schools that have earned distinction by multiple indicators: ranked in the top 20 by U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Medical Schools,” aligned with a U.S. News & World Report “Honor Roll” Hospital, and No. 14 in the nation for National Institutes of Health funding. Newsweek‘s “The World’s Best Smart Hospitals” ranks The Mount Sinai Hospital as No. 1 in New York and top five globally, and Mount Sinai Morningside as top 20 globally, and “The World’s Best Specialized Hospitals” ranks Mount Sinai Heart as No. 1 in New York and No. 4 globally and the Division of Gastroenterology as No. 3 globally. For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
Contact: contact@linusbio.com
SOURCE Linus Biotechnology Inc.
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Mount Sinai Spin-Off Linus Biotechnology Inc. to Revolutionize Precision Medicine with Exposome Sequencing
NEW YORK, Nov. 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Linus Biotechnology Inc. (“LinusBio” or the “Company”) and Mount Sinai Innovation Partners (MSIP) today announced an exclusive worldwide license and collaboration agreement in progress with the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (Icahn Mount Sinai), the medical school of the Mount Sinai Health System (Mount Sinai). LinusBio is a novel biotechnology company dedicated to developing and commercializing molecular exposome and biological-response sequencing for complex diseases for which genomic sequencing alone cannot sufficiently characterize underlying biological disease pathways.
The Company plans to develop a technology platform that will build on breakthroughs in exposome sequencing by Drs. Manish Arora, Christine Austin and Paul Curtin at Mount Sinai’s Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, which has been an NIH Center for the novel frontier science since 2019. LinusBio’s program pipeline comprises precision exposome medicine biomarkers and target discovery across disease domains for which historically no molecular endpoints have been available in clinical trials including CNS (autism spectrum disorder, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), gastroenterology (inflammatory bowel disease), renal disease and oncology. Subject to regulatory approvals, the Company intends to launch its first product with StrandDx™- ASD a molecular biomarker for autism spectrum disorder that can be applied at birth.
“This work illustrates the potential for using novel exposomic technologies as diagnostic tools that can guide patient care. These tools would be a major step in precision medicine for autism and illustrates what sets Mount Sinai apart from programs that solely focus on genetics to individualize patient care.” said Robert Wright, MD, the Chair of the Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health and Director of the Mount Sinai Institute for Exposomic Research.
“Sequencing the exposome and biological response at a molecular level using our proprietary environmental biodynamics platform is furthering our understanding of disease through a completely novel approach. LinusBio’s commercial sequencing laboratory will accelerate bringing applications to patient populations with huge unmet needs,” said Manish Arora, PhD, BDS, MPH, Edith J. Baerwald Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and co-founder of the Company.
“We look forward to working with LinusBio, as it aims to become a leader in precision exposome medicine and drives forward our mission to bring Mount Sinai’s innovative, patient-first discoveries to society,” said Erik Lium, PhD, President, Mount Sinai Innovation Partners and Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Innovation Officer, Mount Sinai Health System.
The exposome sequencing technology above is based on intellectual property developed by Mount Sinai faculty and licensed to LinusBio. Mount Sinai and Mount Sinai faculty, including Drs. Arora and Curtin, have a financial interest in LinusBio.
About Mount Sinai Innovation Partners (MSIP)
MSIP is responsible for driving the real-world application and commercialization of Mount Sinai discoveries and inventions, and the development of research partnerships with industry. Our aim is to translate discoveries and inventions into health care products and services that benefit patients and society. MSIP is accountable for the full spectrum of commercialization activities required to bring Mount Sinai inventions to life. These activities include evaluating, patenting, marketing and licensing new technologies, building research collaborations and partnerships with commercial and nonprofit entities, material transfer and confidentiality, coaching innovators to advance commercially-relevant translational discoveries, and actively fostering an ecosystem of entrepreneurship within the Mount Sinai research and health system communities. For more information, visit www.ip.mountsinai.org.
About Linus Biotechnology Inc.
Linus Biotechnology is a patient-centric, breakthrough science precision exposome medicine company headquartered in New York, NY. For more information contact jan.glassner@linusbio.com.
About the Mount Sinai Health System
The Mount Sinai Health System is New York City’s largest academic medical system, encompassing eight hospitals, a leading medical school, and a vast network of ambulatory practices throughout the greater New York region. We advance medicine and health through unrivaled education and translational research and discovery to deliver care that is the safest, highest-quality, most accessible and equitable, and the best value of any health system in the nation. The Health System includes approximately 7,300 primary and specialty care physicians; 13 free-standing joint-venture centers; more than 410 ambulatory practices throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, and Long Island; and more than 30 affiliated community health centers. The Mount Sinai Hospital is ranked in U.S. News & World Report’s “Honor Roll” of the top 20 U.S. hospitals and among the top in the nation by specialty: No. 1 in Geriatrics and top 20 in Cardiology/Heart Surgery, Diabetes/Endocrinology, Gastroenterology/GI Surgery, Neurology/Neurosurgery, Orthopedics, Pulmonology/Lung Surgery, Urology, and Rehabilitation. Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital is ranked in U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Children’s Hospitals” among the country’s best in four out of 10 pediatric specialties. New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai is ranked among the Top 20 nationally for ophthalmology. The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is one of three medical schools that have earned distinction by multiple indicators: ranked in the top 20 by U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Medical Schools,” aligned with a U.S. News & World Report “Honor Roll” Hospital, and No. 14 in the nation for National Institutes of Health funding. Newsweek‘s “The World’s Best Smart Hospitals” ranks The Mount Sinai Hospital as No. 1 in New York and top five globally, and Mount Sinai Morningside as top 20 globally, and “The World’s Best Specialized Hospitals” ranks Mount Sinai Heart as No. 1 in New York and No. 4 globally and the Division of Gastroenterology as No. 3 globally. For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
SOURCE Linus Biotechnology Inc.
