BIOMODAL LAUNCHES SOLUTION TO SIMULTANEOUSLY SEQUENCE GENETICS AND EPIGENETICS IN ONE WORKFLOW

biomodal (formerly known as Cambridge Epigenetix) commercially launches its new duet multiomics solution, revealing the combinatorial power of genetic and epigenetic information from a single low volume sample

• The duet multiomics solution clearly illustrates novel data modalities to empower a range of applications, starting with input from 10ng of cell-free DNA
• biomodal recently published the solution in a peer reviewed article in Nature Biotechnology
• Prof. Dennis Yuk Ming Lo, recent Lasker-DeBakey Award recipient and liquid biopsy pioneer, joins biomodal's Scientific Advisory Board
• Omead Ostadan, genomics industry veteran and former Illumina and Seer executive, joins biomodal Board of Directors

CAMBRIDGE, England, April 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The duet multiomics solution is the world's first single-base-resolution sequencing technology that enables the simultaneous phased reading of genetic and epigenetic information in a single sample, with one workflow, using any sequencer. The hardware-agnostic product provides more epigenetic information from a single low input DNA library without complex, resource intensive bioinformatics or harsh chemical treatment. Recently published in Nature Biotechnology, the solution provides a more complete picture of the information stored in genomes availing new insights from applications throughout biomedicine.

"Our novel solution removes the technical barriers that have previously held back our broader understanding of epigenetics. Now, our customers can accelerate their research with a more comprehensive view of regulatory function across the genome, through the interplay of genetics and epigenetics at read level. We believe this opens a new era of discovery and utility within next-generation sequencing by capturing additional biological modalities to reveal the complexity and dynamism of the human genome," said Peter Fromen, biomodal CEO.

The duet multiomics solution empowers applications across numerous fields of disease research, delivering greater biological insights into cancer, neurodegenerative disease, ageing, cell biology and population genetics. Using cell-free DNA via liquid biopsy, duet multiomics can simultaneously detect powerful genetic and methylation biomarkers in an individual's blood to provide unique disease insights. Notably, the use of liquid biopsy in oncology, to profile circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) in blood, is a promising minimally invasive approach for early cancer detection and minimal residual disease monitoring.

"duet multiomics solution +modC helps to unlock the full potential of liquid biopsies by breaking down significant barriers in our biomarker discovery research, which relies on gaining accurate, comprehensive genetic and epigenetic data from our valuable samples," said Prof. Sarah-Jane Dawson, clinician-scientist at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. "We gain new insight when measuring the interaction of genetics and epigenetics on the same read, allowing us to better understand the biology behind disease development and treatment responses. We look forward to progressing our research with this technology and affecting a paradigm shift in the way that cancer can be treated and monitored in the clinic."

The technology has been designed with accessibility at its core and is compatible with existing sequencers. The first duet multiomics solution, +modC, enables the sequencing of all canonical bases of DNA (A,C,G,T), plus modified cytosine via a single, low input sample (10ng). The plug-and-play software solution combines open source and proprietary tools to form a seamless analysis pipeline that incorporates error suppression, yielding high quality data with base calls in excess of Q40.  Sample-level information is then ready for interpretation and insights through our proprietary analytics modules. Customers can therefore integrate the technology into their existing workflows without first having to purchase new hardware or build new bioinformatics tools.

Alongside these technological advancements, a number of high-profile experts in the field have joined biomodal's Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) and Board of Directors.

Prof. Dennis Yuk Ming Lo, Director of the Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences, Li Ka Shing Professor of Medicine and Professor of Chemical Pathology at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), and winner of the 2022 Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award, joins the Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). Prof. Lo brings decades of research experience to the SAB, having personally played an important role in the development of trailblazing diagnostic strategies, particularly in non-invasive prenatal testing for multiple diseases. Prof. Lo has pioneered a number of approaches to cancer liquid biopsy, especially for the detection of nasopharyngeal carcinoma and genomewide approaches for screening multiple types of cancer.

"biomodal's innovative approach to accessing genetics and epigenetics in a single sample has potential to further our understanding of disease in ways previously unexplored. I'm delighted to work with the team as they continue to evolve the use of this new technology across applications that may eventually impact human health," said Prof. Lo.

The company has also appointed Mr. Omead Ostadan to its Board of Directors. Mr. Ostadan brings a wealth of experience especially in the areas of product development and commercialisation, having held a wide range of executive roles in life sciences over the past 25 years, including at Applied Biosystems, Solexa, Illumina and Seer.

Commenting on his appointment, Mr Ostadan said: "I'm thrilled to join the biomodal Board at what feels like an inflection point for the field of epigenetics. The company has developed a transformative platform solution to accelerate the market, and has assembled a truly outstanding team to execute against its full potential."

biomodal's senior leadership will be attending the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2023 (14-19 April) where the duet multiomics solution +modC will be available for the first time. The team looks forward to seeing interested parties there, for what promises to be a lively series of discussions around recent discoveries in the field.

Notes to editors

biomodal is an omics based life-sciences technology and analytics company delivering products that bring the dynamism of our ever-changing biology into focus. Our duet multiomics solution enables more epigenetic information from a single, low input DNA library without complex, resource intensive bioinformatics or harsh chemical treatment. Our single-base-resolution, phased sequencing approach unlocks the combinatorial power of genetic and epigenetic information in one workflow, elucidating greater biological insight within the fields of cancer, neurodegenerative disease, and ageing.

Please visit biomodal.com or follow the Company on LinkedIn linkedin.com/company/biomodal

To read about the methodology in detail, please visit: Simultaneous sequencing of genetic and epigenetic bases in DNA | Nature Biotechnology