Idaho Technology Inc. is Awarded U.S. Patent for a High-Speed Thermal Cycler

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued the University of Utah a patent for a high-speed thermal cycler. This patent reinforces the University's patent portfolio in the area of real-time nucleic acid amplification, quantification, and melting analysis. The patents in this unique portfolio are exclusively licensed to Idaho Technology Inc., a molecular biology instrumentation and reagents business in Salt Lake City, Utah.

SALT LAKE CITY, UT (PRWEB) September 9, 2006 -- On July 25, 2006, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued the University of Utah patent 7,081,226 for a high-speed thermal cycler. This patent reinforces the University's patent portfolio in the area of realtime nucleic acid amplification, quantification, and melting analysis. The patents in this unique portfolio are exclusively licensed to Idaho Technology Inc., a molecular biology instrumentation and reagents business in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Carl Wittwer, M.D., Ph.D., University of Utah, commented, “The air-driven carousel format remains the most reliable method for rapid PCR with temperature cycles less than 60 seconds each. Superior temperature control is enabled by mixed air and the circumferential placement of the samples. The design has been implemented in several commercial real-time instruments, including the Roche LightCycler® 1.0–2.0 and Idaho Technology’s JBAIDS and R.A.P.I.D.® instruments for government biothreat detection.”

Rapid PCR is used in the detection of genetic diseases, oncology, and life science research. First demonstrated in 1990 by Carl Wittwer at the University of Utah, this method has been practiced worldwide in commercial devices such as the LightCycler. The University of Utah, Department of Pathology, supported the work leading to this
invention.

About Idaho Technology, Inc.
Idaho Technology, Inc. is a privately held biotechnology company based in Salt Lake City, Utah. Founded in 1990, Idaho Technology licensed the rapid PCR technology from the University of Utah. Through funds from the United States Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Defense, the company has created many commercial instruments and reagents for use in research and applied fields. Several of these products, including the LightCycler, have been sublicensed to Roche Diagnostics. Researchers, medical technicians, law enforcement officers, and soldiers in the field use the company's devices to detect or study disease-causing organisms. For further information, please visit www.idahotech.com.

Source: Idaho Technology Inc.

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