Nanotechnology Now - Press Release: VisEn Announces Launch of Novel MMPSense Fluorescence Molecular Imaging Probe

Home > Press > VisEn Announces Launch of Novel MMPSense Fluorescence Molecular Imaging Probe

Abstract:
-VisEn's Expanding Probe Portfolio Broadens Molecular Imaging Applications in Key Areas of Disease Research and Drug Development-

VisEn Announces Launch of Novel MMPSense Fluorescence Molecular Imaging Probe

WOBURN, MA | Posted on June 8th, 2007

VisEn Medical, Inc., a leader in fluorescence in vivo imaging from research through medicine, announced today the market launch of its MMPSense(TM) molecular imaging probe for real time imaging of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) related activities in vivo. The launch further expands the company's proprietary molecular imaging probe and system product platforms to now even more broadly enable real-time imaging of molecular and biologic activity in vivo, including ranges of protease activities, angiogenesis, bone generation, vascular permeability, and inflammatory responses. By imaging and quantifying disease-related biological activities and therapeutic interventions in vivo, VisEn technology platforms enable expanded areas of research, increasingly efficient drug development, and advanced personalized clinical medicine into the future.

The VisEn MMPSense(TM) probe, developed from the Company's proprietary fluorescence imaging probe platforms, is an activatible in vivo fluorescence probe capable of imaging MMP activity in tumors and other sites of inflammation in vivo. In its non-active state, the probe is not fluorescent, but it emits strong fluorescence in response to MMP activity in vivo. According to the National Cancer Institute, MMPs are a group of enzymes that can break down proteins, such as collagen, that are normally found in the spaces between cells in tissues (i.e., extracellular matrix proteins). It is known that MMP activity is involved in many disease-related phenomena, including cancer propagation, invasion and metastasis, inflammation, host response, and in areas of cardiovascular disease. On May 2 of this year, VisEn Medical and its exclusive distribution partner in Asia, Olympus Corporation, announced the launch of MMPSense as well as VisEn's nanoparticle- based AngioSpark and AminoSpark molecular imaging probes, in Japan and other key Asian markets.

"Today's MMPSense product launch marks a significant advance in our drive to provide a complete package of translational molecular imaging solutions for measuring and quantifying disease progression and drug effect in vivo," said Kirtland G. Poss, President and CEO of VisEn Medical. "Our partners in drug development and clinical research worldwide can now access these important new tools that will help the whole field better understand, define and treat molecular targets and disease processes in an unprecedented fashion."

VisEn's in vivo fluorescence imaging technologies, including its Fluorescence Probe Portfolio and its Fluorescence Molecular Tomographic Imaging Systems (FMT), provide the industry's most robust fluorescence molecular imaging performance in identifying, characterizing and quantifying ranges of disease biomarkers in vivo. VisEn probes are designed to be compatible with a range of fluorescence imaging systems, including planar fluorescence imaging systems, intravital microscopes, and VisEn's FMT tomographic imaging system.

Additional product information can be obtained by calling Customer Support at VisEn Medical: 781-932-6875, ext. 315; or via email at: ; or at http://www.visenmedical.com/ .

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About VisEn Medical, Inc.
VisEn Medical, Inc. was founded in 2000 based on fluorescence imaging technologies initially developed by industry-leading researchers and clinicians at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. VisEn is developing the industry's highest performing fluorescence molecular imaging technology platforms, from research through medicine. The Company also works directly with its partners to design ranges of tailored probes and applications that are targeted to their specific research areas. VisEn recently announced a multi-year joint research and development program with Merck & Co to develop and apply a range of fluorescence imaging agents for real-time imaging of key disease biomarkers in vivo. Privately-held VisEn is headquartered in Woburn, Massachusetts and has been financed by leading venture firms including Flagship Ventures and The Bollard Group.

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Contacts:
Customer Support
VisEn Medical
781-932-6875, ext. 315

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