LeadScope Announces Research Collaboration with the NCI

Privately-held LeadScope Inc announced that they have entered into a research collaboration with Dr. John Weinstein at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). LeadScope's software products are used to accelerate the drug discovery process by integrating large quantities of data and thereby reducing the time required to analyze and interpret research results. This collaboration will use LeadScope, the company's structure-based data mining and visualization software to investigate correlations between compound classes and differential gene expression in the NCI60 cell lines. NCI60 is a panel of 60 human cancer cell lines against which the NCI routinely tests for the growth inhibition and cytotoxicity of compounds. To date more than 70,000 compounds have been tested.

Recently, Dr. Weinstein's group and their collaborators published a study in which they used cDNA microarrays to generate gene expression profiles for the NCI60 and then used bioinformatics techniques to correlate those profiles with drug activity patterns. Dr. Weinstein's group and LeadScope will continuing to explore this rich data set.

"This collaboration combines LeadScope's expertise in structure-based datamining and information management with NCI's capabilities in biological screening to extend our knowledge-based solutions for lead identification," said Dr. Paul Blower, Chief Scientific Officer, LeadScope Inc. "By working with NCI's scientists, LeadScope will expand their ability to analyze and correlate data from throughout discovery."

"LeadScope Inc differentiates itself in the scientific software market by providing data mining tools that understand the vocabulary of research scientists -- chemical structures," commented Dr. Allen Richon, CEO, LeadScope Inc. "However, the range of LeadScope's technology is not limited to chemistry. This collaboration is the beginning of our development of GeneScope, a gene expression analysis system and ToxScope, a toxicity prediction program."

LeadScope is an informatics company focused on creating chemically intelligent decision support systems that scientists use; not just because they are easy to use, but because they increase productivity. For additional information, contact Dr. Allen Richon, Chief Executive Officer, LeadScope Inc, 614-675- 4111, arichon@leadscope.com or visit the Company's Web site at www.leadscope.com.