FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, November 27th, 2001
CONTACT:
Floyd E. Bloom, M.D.
Founding Chief Executive Officer
(858) 677-0466
NEUROME, INC. SIGNS AGREEMENT WITH
THE CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY FOR MAGNETIC RESONANCE
IMAGING (MRI) OF MICE
Three-Dimensional Images to Provide High
Resolution for Studying Mice Brains
LA JOLLA, CA – Neurome, Inc. today announced an agreement
with the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) to utilize
the Institute's Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) technology
to obtain three-dimensional images of mice brains for its
neuroanatomy research.
Using MRI images captured by Dr. Russell Jacobs, a Member
of the Beckman Institute at Caltech, scientists at Neurome
will prepare a three-dimensional atlas, mapping out gene and
protein data of mice brains to determine which genes are expressed
in which neurons and within which circuitry.
"The ability to obtain high quality MRI images of mice
brains is our critical first step in achieving the genomic
mapping analysis which is the main goal of our company,”
said Dr. Floyd Bloom, Neurome's chief executive officer. “Professor
Jacobs will use one of the world's most powerful magnets,
which will allow us to obtain high resolution images of brains
that are in fact not quite as big as the tip of a thumb. The
'micro MRI,' as we have nicknamed this procedure on mice,
gives us a tremendous jump-start in being able to survey the
entire brain structure in three dimensions. This will enable
us to compare the MRI images to the microscope images that
we collect at Neurome in our research partnership with Elan
Pharmaceuticals (Elan).”
Neurome's agreement with Caltech involves three-dimensional
scans of fixed mice brain samples, including among the subjects,
Elan Pharmaceutical's triple cross mice (with and without
the Alzheimer's gene). Neurome entered into a three-year joint
venture with Elan Pharmaceuticals (a division of Elan Corporation,
plc) in October 2000, utilizing Neurome's technologies to
analyze Elan's mouse model of Alzheimer's disease to identify
and exploit molecules and pathways relevant to diagnosis and
treatment of the debilitating disease.
“Our collaboration with the Neurome team will demonstrate
both the remarkable precision of high power MRI applied to
mice and the new structural perspectives on brain development
and aging that precision can offer when harnessed to the industrial
neuroanatomy technologies developed at Neurome,” Dr.
Jacobs commented.
Neurome's brain research focuses on analyzing the differences
of mice brains' shape and size. The company plans to use the
MRI images to assist in preparing a solid baseline to compare
how one mouse of the same strain, age and gender varies from
its littermate and species mate partners. One of Neurome's
main focus areas for future research partnerships will include
studying and analyzing mice, whose genes have been manipulated
by transgenic technology.
Founded in 1891, Caltech has an enrollment of some 2,000
students, and a faculty of about 290 professorial members,
54 research members and some 550 postdoctoral scholars. The
Institute has more than 20,000 alumni. Caltech employs a staff
of more than 2,400 on campus and 4,800 at JPL. Over the years,
29 Nobel Prizes and four Crafoord Prizes have been awarded
to faculty members and alumni. Forty-seven Caltech faculty
members and alumni have received the National Medal of Science;
and eight alumni (two of whom are also trustees), two additional
trustees, and one faculty member have won the National Medal
of Technology. Since 1958, 13 faculty members have received
the annual California Scientist of the Year award. On the
Caltech faculty there are 78 fellows of the American Academy
of Arts and Sciences; and on the faculty and Board of Trustees,
70 members of the National Academy of Sciences and 46 members
of the National Academy of Engineering.
Elan Corporation, plc (Elan) is a worldwide specialty pharmaceutical
and drug delivery company, headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.
Elan is a world leader in drug delivery and in the discovery,
development and marketing of products and services in neurology,
oncology and pain management. Elan's principal research and
manufacturing facilities are located in Ireland, the United
States and Israel. Elan shares trade on the New York, London
and Dublin Stock Exchanges.
Neurome, Inc. develops standardized, quantitative databases
that accurately depict and integrate gene expression patterns
in the three-dimensional context of the brain's structures,
circuits and cells, and deploys these databases in primary
research directed toward the discovery and development of
gene targets for enhancement of brain function and treatment
of brain-based disease. Neurome performs contract brain research
for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, while at the
same time pursuing its own in-house and collaborative research
protocols. The data collected from these efforts will populate
an evolving, comprehensive database available by subscription
and useful on a broad level for analyses of mouse models of
brain function and disease. In this regard, the application
of the Neurome technologies will provide rigorous, quantitative
data that are optimally suited to the measurement of subtle
cell-type specific shifts in gene expression, as well as progression
and prevention of degenerative events affecting specific cell
classes and brain regions.
For more information, please contact Neurome, Inc., 11149
North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, California 92037-1031.
Telephone: (858) 677-0466; Fax (858) 677-0458; Web site: www.neurome.com.
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