Workflow Guide Formalizes Biomarker Identification

A biomarker workflow guide enables identification of potentially useful biomarkers during the preclinical exploratory phase via analysis of gene expression array data or proteomics data.

Ingenuity pathways analysis (IPA) was developed by Ingenuity Systems (Redwood City, CA, USA) to formalize its ongoing biomarker initiative. With the workflow guide, researchers will be able to prioritize biomarker leads by associating them with biology relevant to the observed phenotype. IPA can also help researchers select biomarker panels from the most significant clusters by grouping clusters in the context of pathways, functions, or diseases.

A software application that enables researchers to model, analyze, and understand complex biologic systems, IPA is deployed in pharmacologic and biotechnology companies and academic institutions throughout the world. It supports analysis of high throughput programs and is used in areas of drug discovery and development from target identification and validation to biomarkers, predictive toxicology, and pharmacogenomics.

We were able to use IPA's computational pathways analytics to develop network signatures from gene expression data and to identify a novel biomarker candidate for mesothelioma, stated Dr. Harvey Pass, professor of cardiothoracic surgery and chief, division of thoracic surgery and thoracic oncology, at New York University (New York, NY; USA).

Once we identify such biomarker candidates, we can look at larger cohorts of patients for further validation. We believe this Ingenuity methodology, which was used to find osteopontin as a mesothelioma marker as described in the New England Journal of Medicine, will become a standard protocol for biomarker discovery.



Related Links:
Ingenuity Systems
New York University