SUNY’s College of Nanoscale Science & Engineering (CNSE) and Pittsfield, Mass.-based Nuclea Biotechnologies have launched a $1 million research partnership to enable the development and commercialization of a high-throughput nanochip to accelerate the diagnosis and treatment of breast, colon, prostate and other cancers.

"This public-private partnership with Nuclea Biotechnologies expands CNSE’s research in the nanobioscience arena and illustrates its role in accelerating advanced technologies and attracting high-tech companies to New York," said Dr. Alain E. Kaloyeros, CNSE senior vice president and chief executive officer.

"This research agreement is a perfect marriage of biotechnology and nanotechnology," said Patrick Muraca, president and chief executive officer of Nuclea. "CNSE’s global reputation will lend critical expertise in developing the miniature version of our protein chip, which is an important element for us as we work toward commercialization."

"This partnership targets important research that offers great promise for improving the quality of life for those stricken with cancer and other deadly diseases," said Dr. James Castracane, professor and head of CNSE’s nanobioscience constellation. "We look forward to working with Nuclea Biotechnologies to develop and commercialize new sensing platforms that will enhance disease diagnosis and treatment and, ultimately, promote healthcare that is more efficient and cost effective."

In 2005, Nuclea patented an Antibody Protein Analysis Chip to be used in its fatty acid synthase (FAS) analysis. Currently, Nuclea is able to conduct roughly 300 tests per run using the protein chip. Through this partnership with CNSE, the company expects to triple the number of tests  performed during each run.

CNSE will utilize its nanofabrication capabilities to help Nuclea develop a high-throughput nanochip, which would be used as a sensing platform for the analysis of biomarkers associated with cancer and other diseases. This will increase the number of tests per run and also result in smaller amounts of the biological sample necessary for testing. Concurrently, CNSE will explore methods to support the miniaturization of the protein chip.