INTRODUCTION
• The EpiSwitch biomarker discovery platform detects systemic changes in the cellular genomic architecture using a microarray and PCR-based biomarker platform (Figure 1)1. It identifies and monitors chromosome conformation signatures (CCSs), key regulatory processes that integrate environmental cues and genetic alterations into the genomic regulatory machinery
– CCSs are also known as gene loops, chromosome domains, or long-range
chromosomal interactions
• CCSs are the primary step in a cascade of genomic regulatory events and
are directly linked with cellular phenotype. CCSs have low off-rates and only change when a physiologically signaled transition to a new phenotype occurs or because of external intervention. As these events are binary, they can be measured by changes in other cellular entities, such as DNA methylation and RNA and protein expression.
Oxford Biodynamics PLC (LON:OBD) was spun out from Oxford University in June 2007 with the aim of translating fundamental scientific advances into a commercialised platform technology and a new generation of biomarkers for cancer, ALS and other diseases.