NEW YORK – Agilent Technologies and Akoya Biosciences are working together to develop multiplex-immunohistochemistry diagnostic solutions used for tissue analysis and to commercialize end-to-end workflow tools for multiplex assays for biopharmaceutical companies, the firms announced Friday.
The partnership will bring together Santa Clara, California-based Agilent's Dako Omnis autostaining instrument with Marlborough, Massachusetts-based Akoya's PhenoImager HT imaging platform for multiplex chromogenic immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescent assays. Together, the products will comprise an end-to-end workflow for tissue biomarker analysis in companion diagnostic development, including reagents, staining, imaging, and analysis.
"This partnership enables an ecosystem that assists the development of novel precision cancer therapeutics and offers a streamlined workflow to our joint customers in the clinical research market to meet the needs of future clinical diagnostics," said Sam Raha, president of Agilent's Diagnostic and Genomics Group, in a statement.
Agilent and Akoya are also developing chromogenic and immunofluorescent multiplex assays, which include spatial analysis of cellular organization in tumors, for use by biopharmaceutical companies developing and validating biomarkers for precision cancer therapeutics. Researchers and medical professionals will be able to use the assays for patient selection and stratification, the firms said.
The partnership builds on Agilent's experience with companion diagnostics and immunohistochemistry workflows and its existing partnerships in the pharmaceutical industry, as well as Akoya's experience with spatial analysis and single-cell imaging and its CLIA-certified lab capabilities.
"Multiplex tissue analysis has the potential to transform the field of cancer therapeutics and usher in a new era of precision pathology," said Brian McKelligon, CEO of Akoya Biosciences, in a statement, adding that the partnership will "catalyze the development and deployment of multiplex tissue-based biomarkers."
Under a value-added reseller agreement, Akoya will be able to distribute and resell Agilent's Dako Omnis as part of the multiplex tools they're developing.