LifeCell Partners With LifeCodexx AG to Launch Rapid and Affordable Non-invasive Prenatal DNA Testing (NIPT) in India

CHENNAI, June 8, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

With exclusive access to novel qNIPT^TM technology, LifeCell aims at category leadership

LifeCodexx AG, a pioneer in non-invasive prenatal DNA testing in Europe has announced its partnership with LifeCell, India's leading mother and baby preventive health care provider, to bring PrenaTest® qNIPT^TM testing for the first time to India.

The qNIPT™ technology that detects the presence of fetal trisomy 21 (Down Syndrome) from maternal blood, received CE marking (European Conformity) in December 2016 last year. This certification was obtained after a successful blinded clinical validation of around 1000 samples, demonstrating a 100% credibility of test results obtained from PrenaTest®. The novel qNIPT™ technology clearly demonstrates a significant cost-efficiency and rapid turnaround time compared to other NIPT techniques as it doesn't rely on costly and lengthy sequencing methodology.

Down Syndrome (DS), also called Trisomy 21 is a condition where extra genetic material causes delays in child development, both mentally & physically and is one of the most common genetic birth disorders.  Down Syndrome (DS) is associated with mild to moderate learning disabilities, growth milestone delays, typical facial features and low muscle tone in early infancy. Though Down syndrome can't be prevented, it can be detected before a child is born.

India has the highest incidence of Down Syndrome and it occurs in approximately 1 of 830 live births, as per Down Syndrome Federation of India.  Through a series of screenings and tests, Down Syndrome can be detected before the baby is born.

The routinely recommended prenatal screening tests are non-DNA based which unfortunately have lower detection rates (<95%) and higher false positives (5%). To confirm the diagnosis, further investigations are undertaken through invasive procedures causing a threat to the baby in the womb and added discomfort for the mother. Wider adoption of NIPT in global markets has substantially reduced the reporting of false positive diagnosis which has reduced the need for any invasive tests by 60-70%.

With this exclusive technology partnership with LifeCodexx AG, LifeCell will be able to perform the licensed qNIPT^TM PrenaTest® at LifeCell's laboratories in Chennai (India) and will be the first in the country to offer qNIPT^TM technology that is more advanced than sequencing methodology being used by others.

Mr. Mayur Abhaya, CEO and MD of LifeCell said "We are excited to bring PrenaTest® using qNIPT^TM technology, the world's most advanced NIPT technology to India that would lead to substantially lower parental anxiety, as they would be able to make better informed decisions with access to reliable and affordable test results, yet with no risk to the fetus."

Dr. Michael Lutz, CEO of LifeCodexx AG said, "We are very pleased to have partnered with LifeCell since they have a long standing expertise in the field of preventive healthcare services for mother and child in the Indian market." He further added, "We are certain that our qNIPT™ technology will find a ready market in India due to its high cost-efficiency and rapid turnaround time and also, considering that India has a birth rate of over 25 million children per year."

"Our laboratory for PrenaTest® is being set-up and the service will be available for our customers from November this year," said Mr. Mayur Abhaya. 

PrenaTest® will be serviced under LifeCell flagship brand BabyShield, the division specialised in mother and baby diagnostic services.

About LifeCell 

LifeCell, established in 2004 is India's leading provider of preventive healthcare services for family wellness, such as stem cell banking and diagnostic testing, with facilities at Chennai and Gurgaon with a network spanning over 200 cities in India and abroad.

BabyCord, LifeCell's umbilical cord stem cell preservation services is world's second largest with over 50,000 parents preserving their baby's stem cells with it each year and over 2,00,000 parents already having trusted LifeCell. With the recent launch of BabyCord Share, a community-based approach towards stem cell access, is a global first and aims to provide families in India better future access to stem cells than even currently possible in advanced countries such as the U.S. LifeCell's processing, storage and testing facilities are the most accredited having received recognitions from domestic and global bodies such as the AABB (formerly American Association of Blood Banks), College of American Pathologists, National Accreditation Board for Laboratories, World Health Organization, amongst many others, and is also U.S. FDA registered.

BabyShield, LifeCell's preventive genetic screening and diagnostic testing services is India's market leader for newborn screening services and recently forayed into prenatal screening.

Visit us at: http://www.lifecell.in

About LifeCodexx AG 

Headquartered in Konstanz (Germany), LifeCodexx AG has been developing innovative and clinically validated non-invasive molecular genetic tests based on the newest molecular analytical methods since 2010. With the PrenaTest®, Europe's first non-invasive prenatal test (NIPT) for the determination of the most common chromosomal disorders in unborn children, launched in 2012, LifeCodexx AG has been changing prenatal diagnostics considerably. The test is currently performed within Germany and Switzerland in strict conformity with the highest quality standards as per the European Directive on In-vitro Diagnostic Medical Devices. Now, with the development of a novel qPCR-based assay for the reliable prediction of preeclampsia early in the pregnancy, LifeCodexx AG will start to expand its product and service portfolio into the area of integrated pregnancy and prenatal care solutions.

Visit us at: http://www.lifecodexx.com

For More details, please contact
LifeCell
Krutika Rajkumar
Senior Manager, Corporate Communications
[email protected]
+91-9884493607

Lifecodexx
Elke Decker
Director Strategic Marketing and Corporate Communications
[email protected]
+49-(0)-7531-9769-461