Zomedica Announces Research Agreement with Celsee Diagnostics for Cancer Liquid Biopsy

ANN ARBOR, Mich., Jan. 05, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Zomedica Pharmaceuticals Corp. (TSX-V:ZOM), a veterinary pharmaceutical and health care solutions company, today announced it has entered into a research collaboration agreement with Celsee Diagnostics, Inc., an innovator of human health products in the emerging field of liquid biopsy. The research project defined in the agreement aims to test the feasibility of Celsee's liquid biopsy technology for veterinary application as a canine cancer diagnostics.

A liquid biopsy is a blood test with the potential to detect the presence of circulating tumor cells in the blood. Circulating tumor cells, commonly referred to as CTCs, are cells that have shed from a primary tumor into neighboring blood vessels and are transported throughout the body's circulatory system. The detection of CTCs in the blood could indicate a cancer diagnosis without the need for an invasive tissue biopsy.

Concurrent to this research project, Zomedica filed a provisional application for patent with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in support of its research and development efforts specific to canine cancer diagnostics. The provisional patent is based on Zomedica's identification of novel canine biomarkers for diagnosing canine cancers.

?Canine cancer is one of the most commonly diagnosed diseases in the veterinary clinic,? stated Zomedica's Chief Medical Officer William MacArthur, MS, DVM. ?It is difficult, expensive and often times impractical for veterinarians to diagnose some cancers in a non-invasive manner. As such, veterinarians are frequently required to make treatment recommendations to pet owners based on incomplete patient information.?

This translational opportunity aligns with Zomedica's veterinary-focused mission to provide needs-driven solutions to the real-world problems of veterinary practice. Zomedica anticipates translational opportunities such as this to be an important component of its diversified product strategy.

About Zomedica
With U.S. operations based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Zomedica is a veterinary pharmaceutical and health care solutions company targeting products for companion animals (canine, feline and equine) through a ground-breaking approach that focuses on the unmet needs of clinical veterinarians. Zomedica is building a diversified portfolio of products comprised of the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative drugs alongside novel drug delivery systems, devices and diagnostics. With multiple clinical veterinarians in executive management, it is Zomedica's mission to give veterinarians the opportunity to lower costs, increase productivity, and grow revenue while better serving the animals in their care. For more information, visit www.ZOMEDICA.com.

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About Celsee Diagnostics
Celsee Diagnostics, a privately-held Michigan-based company, develops automated systems for rare CTC enrichment and single-cell analysis. The company's precise, accurate, and reliable platform for research and clinical diagnostics development will allow healthcare professionals more time to focus on their patients' therapeutic treatment and outcomes. The label-free Celsee PREP platforms perform all the required processing steps to isolate and execute downstream single-cell analysis including immunochemistry, DNA FISH and mRNA FISH, while the Celsee ANALYZER scans and analyzes the prepared slide automatically. Celsee's SingleCell products provide access, efficiency and simplicity, the most desirable attributes related to products for use in single-cell isolation, analysis and retrieval.

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