Daiichi Pure Chemicals Co. Ltd, Toshiba Corporation, and Toshiba Hokuto Electronics Corporation have agreed to work together to promote in-vitro DNA-chip-based diagnostics, starting with diagnosis of the human papilloma virus (HPV).

Under an agreement announced today in Tokyo, the three companies will direct Toshiba's industry-leading capabilities in DNA chips and electrochemical DNA detection and analysis, and Daiichi Pure Chemicals' technology dedicated to in in- vitro diagnosis toward further advances in DNA-based diagnostic systems.

Daiichi Pure Chemicals and Toshiba have collaborated in the development of a diagnostic system based on an electrochemical DNA detection chip since January, 2004 and are now ready to release their development.

Infection with human papilloma virus (HPV) is the main cause of cervical cancer, the second most common cancer in women. Alongside progress in vaccines to treat HPV, the ability to detect the HPV strain will promote more effective treatment regimes and help to cut the incidence of cervical cancer.

The main direction in DNA chip development previously focused on fluorescence detection technology that used a laser to irradiate a sample and then measures the resulting fluorescence. Since the equipment is large and not easily portable, and the chip and screening process are both expensive, fluorescence detection is impractical for real-world application outside the research lab.

The in-vitro electrochemical detection methodology being developed by Toshiba allows the detection of DNA without the use of fluorescent (or other) labels and offers much easier operation and shorter analysis time than currently available methodologies. The equipment required is also much more compact and integrate with IT technologies, and more cost efficient.