Benzinga | Apr 7, 2021 08:14AM EDT

Bionano Genomics Announces Expansion In Adoption Of Saphyr System With Addition Of Indalo Bio In South Africa

Bionano Genomics, Inc. (NASDAQ:BNGO) announced the adoption of the Saphyr system for optical genome mapping (OGM) by Indalo Bio (Pty) Ltd, an advanced molecular genetics laboratory based in Cape Town, South Africa, marking the first adoption of Saphyr in Africa. Indalo Bio will develop assays on the Saphyr system to analyze the cancer genomes of patients with hematological malignancies and solid tumors. Through its network of contacts and collaborations with pathology groups and hospitals across Africa, Indalo Bio aims to make modern genetic technology available to everyone on the African continent.



Jo-Ann Kotze, Head of Genetics of Indalo Bio, commented, "I have been following Bionano's progress for years, and have been impressed by the correlations of OGM with standard cytogenetics reported in the validation studies that have been published and presented so far. As I am the National Board Examiner for the specialized field of Cytogenetics of the Society of Medical Laboratory Technologists of South Africa, my goal is to formally register our Saphyr-based laboratory as a training laboratory for the field of Cytogenomics and write OGM into the South African Cytogenetic guidelines. Where chromosomal microarray (CMA) has failed to replace standard cytogenetic testing of cancer samples, I believe OGM has the potential to revolutionize cytogenetic analysis in Africa and the rest of the world."

"We believe that the ability of Saphyr to perform a comprehensive and automated analysis of all structural variant types makes access to advanced analysis of structural variation for genetic diseases and cancer more straightforward than ever before," commented Erik Holmlin, PhD, CEO of Bionano Genomics. "Today is World Health Day 2021, focused on eliminating health inequalities and building a fairer, healthier world. As Saphyr adoption expands around the world, we are proud to be seeing areas like Africa embrace OGM. We believe that the assays Indalo Bio will develop on Saphyr can help democratize access to technology and ultimately help to improve the lives of patients all over the world."