Rubicon Genomics Introduces PicoPlex Single Cell Whole Genome Amplification Kit for Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnostics and Stem Cell and Cancer Cell Research

ANN ARBOR, Mich.--(Business Wire)--
Rubicon Genomics, Inc., a developer of pre-amplification products that enable
optimal performance of the most advanced genetic analysis tools, announced today
the release of its PicoPlex Single Cell Whole Genome Amplification (WGA) kit-a
more rapid, accurate and reproducible method for amplifying single genomes than
current technologies. This product targets the pre-implantation genetic
diagnostics (PGD), cancer research and stem cell research markets, which require
rapid, reproducible amplification to profile patient genotypes, karyotypes and
mutations. PicoPlex enables reference labs to begin qPCR, microarray or
sequencing analysis less than three hours after collecting patient cells.

"With the PicoPlex Single Cell WGA kit, researchers can now obtain the same
amount of genomic information from one cell as they do from 10,000 cells," said
James Koziarz, acting president and CEO of Rubicon Genomics.

"We use the PicoPlex Single Cell WGA technology because it reproducibly
amplifies a large percentage of the genome every time," said Mark Hughes, CEO of
Genesis Genetics Institute, a pioneer in pre-implantation genomics diagnostics
that has evaluated dozens of single cell WGA technologies over the past 16
years. "And the few genomic alleles that are under-represented in the one-cell
WGA are predictable, making the data sets easy to anticipate and accommodate. We
like the predictability of this product when examining many alleles from single
haploid and diploid cells."

Researchers can use the PicoPlex Single Cell WGA kits to reliably extract more
genetic information from single cells with minimal background. Specifically, the
kit reproducibly amplifies total DNA one million-fold from single cells to
produce five micrograms of amplified DNA in less than three hours.

Current single-cell WGA kits using molecular displacement amplification (MDA)
technology do not offer reproducible amplification of whole genomes, causing
sporadic allele and locus dropouts, which seriously compromise results in PGD.
Hence, microarray and qPCR genetic analysis of single cells using MDA-amplified
DNA is noisy and produces unreliable data.

Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization (FISH) technology has historically been used
to examine the chromosomes in PGD, but many laboratories are moving away from
this subjective assessment of one cell. Newer technologies employ qPCR and
comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) on microarrays. These require high
fidelity, genome-wide DNA amplification technology. With PicoPlex Single Cell
WGA, researchers can now confidently employ microarrays and qPCR for more
accurate genotyping, karotyping and copy number variation analysis from single
cells.

PicoPlex`s ability to amplify genomic DNA from single cells opens new avenues
for research on embryos, stem cells and cancer cells. For oncologists, the
PicoPlex Single Cell WGA kit may enable more specific diagnosis or prognosis
using a patient`s circulating cancer cells. Additionally, it enables the study
of heterogeneity of cancer cells creating a better understanding of the broader
range of gene expression in each cell, helping researchers potentially identify
more specific cancer biomarkers.

To find out more or to purchase PicoPlex Single Cell WGA kits, visit
http://www.rubicongenomics.com/picoplex/.

About Rubicon Genomics, Inc.

Rubicon is a pre-analytical platform company that commercializes reagents and
kits to increase the analytical and clinical performance of instrument platforms
including qPCR, microarrays, and next-generation sequencing. Rubicon kits
amplify small clinical samples into large amounts of pure DNA with uniform
concentration and molecular weight that increase the sensitivity, specificity,
and reproducibility of analysis in research and diagnostic applications,
including single cells, formalin-fixed tissue and plasma. Rubicon sells licenses
and kits to the clinical markets, including pre-implantation and prenatal
testing, cancer testing, and diagnostic manufacturing. Visit
www.rubicongenomics.com for more information.

Rubicon Genomics, Inc.
John Langmore
734-677-2797
langmore@rubicongenomics.com
or
Chempetitive Group
Ember Garrett
858-457-2436 x 107
egarrett@chempetitive.com

Copyright Business Wire 2009