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2003 Program

Immediately preceding CHI's Integrated Bioinformatics, January 16-18, 2002

The future is now. Miniaturized platform technologies are no longer new concepts. Ease of use, speed, and the potential for cost reduction have driven lab-on-a-chip and microarray technologies. Research has proven the proof of principle for specific applications. Innovations in technology and the resulting applications are the focus of CHI's Fourth Annual Lab-on-a-Chip and Microarrays for Post-Genome Applications. Join your colleagues to share the advances of science's most rapidly advancing field.

Corporate Sponsors:
Corporate Support:
Official Publication:
Sponsoring Publications:
BioArray News Bioinform Genome Research Lab on a Chip
Web Partners:
Genome Biology Lab-on-a-chip.com
Sponsoring Society:
International Society for Computational Biology

Chairs and Scientific Advisors
Dr. Tito Bacarese-Hamilton, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine
Dr. Joerg Hoheisel, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum
Mr. Tim Kievits, PamGene BV
Dr. Sabeth Verpoorte, University of Neuchâtel
Dr. James Woodgett, Ontario Cancer Institute

New Insights in Biology through Gene Expression Studies
Correlation of Gene Expression Profiles with Clinical Data
Nicotine Effect on Gene Expression
Transcript Imaging of the Development of T-Cells
Quality Control in the Food Sector
Phenotype Micorarrays

Exploitation of Gene Expression Know-How
Analysis of Expression Variations in Cancer Tissue
Protein-Chip Prototype for Rheumatoid Arthritis
Bead Arrays
Protein Biochips in Proteomics
MEMS Resonant Biosensor
SPR Imaging of Chemical Microarrays

Lab-on-a-Chip and Microarray Applications in the Diagnostic Field
Rapid Identification of Mycrobacterial Species
Clinical Diagnosis of Human Leukemia
Serodiagnosis of Infectious Diseases
Oncology Diagnosis Tools
Sandwich Antibody Assays

Lab-on-a-Chip in Action: Point of Need Testing
Detection of Groundwater Pesticides
Environmental Toxicology
Blood Safety Screening
Microfluidic Triage Protein Chip
Microarrays and Metabolomics

Dissecting Signaling Pathway Signatures from Micorarray Data
MIAME and ArrayExpress
Data Reproducibility
Data Linking  (click here to read Dr. Quackenbush's slide presentation in PDF format (3877kb))
Modeling Biological Responses
Building Databases on Clinical Samples
Artificial Neural Networks

 

Sunday, January 13

16.00- 18.00 Conference Registration

Monday, January 14

7.00 Conference Registration

7.00-Technology Workshop with
7.45 Continental Breakfast

 

New Insights in Biology through Gene Expression Studies

8.30 Chair's Opening Remarks
Mr. Tim Kievits, Chief Executive Officer, PamGene BV

8.40 Correlation of Gene Expression Profiles with Clinical Data in Patients with B-Cell Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
Dr. Christian Stratowa, Bioinformatics Scientist, Boehringer Ingelheim Austria GmbH
Recent advances in expression profiling technologies for the first time permit the study of gene expression and disease-related changes on a genomewide scale. However, the quality of information obtained from expression profile data alone is limited. In contrast, correlation of expression profiles with clinical data should allow a much broader analysis. B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) was chosen as a model to demonstrate the feasibility of such an approach since it is characterized by a highly variable clinical course as reflected by varying survival times. In this talk it will be shown that the correlation of expression profiles with clinical data can be used to gain new insights into molecular aspects of a disease.

9.10 Analysis of Nicotine Effect on Gene Expression in Endothelial Cells
Dr. Shu Ye, Senior Lecturer in Human Genetics, Human Genetics Division, School of Medicine, University of Southampton
The primary role of cigarette smoking in the development of cardiovascular diseases is to cause chemical damage to the vascular endothelium, which is associated with changes in gene expression in endothelial cells. Using GeneFilters microarrays and RT-PCR techniques, we ascertained the expression of over 4,000 genes in human coronary artery endothelial cells treated or untreated with nicotine, a major constituent of cigarette smoke. Nicotine was found to alter the expression of genes whose products are involved in signal transduction or transcriptional regulation or are directly related to endothelial functions. The data from this study, which benefits from the holistic approach of microarray analysis, are of relevance to the understanding of pathological effects of cigarette smoking.

9.40 Transcript Imaging of the Development of Human T Helper Cell Using Oligonucleotide Arrays
Dr. Lars Rogge, Senior Scientist, Roche Milano Ricerche
Many pathological processes including allergies and autoimmune diseases are associated with the presence of specialized subsets of T helper cells at the site of inflammation. Understanding the genetic program that controls the functional properties of T helper 1 (Th1) versus T helper 2 (Th2) cells may provide insight into the pathophysiology of inflammatory diseases. We compared the gene expression profiles of human Th1 and Th2 cells using high-density oligonucleotide arrays with the capacity to display transcript levels of 6,000 human genes. We have analyzed the data sets derived from five independent experiments using statistical algorithms. This approach resulted in the identification of 215 differentially expressed genes, among which were genes functionally related to transcriptional regulation, apoptosis, proteolysis, and cell adhesion and migration. Functional assays and in vivo expression of selected genes have validated the biological relevance of our study. Our results provide novel insight into the transcriptional program controlling the functional diversity of T helper cell subsets.

10.10 Refreshment Break

11.00 Accelerating Drug Discovery through Gene Expression Analysis and the in silico Functional Genomics Approach
Dr. Andreas Hohn, Senior Director, Business Development and Marketing, GeneData
GeneData has developed a comprehensive suite of integrated software systems to tackle the typical problems pharma companies are facing in data quality assessment and data analysis of genome, transcriptome, proteome, metabolome, and high-throughput screening data. We demonstrate how gene expression analysis in combination with other genomics technologies leads to new functional insights that accelerate the drug discovery process. We discuss two examples of complex biological data sets with the purpose of understanding toxicological mechanisms and mode-of-actions of novel structural classes of antibiotics compounds. In the first example we use a standardized collection process of expression data to establish a reference compendium that can be further used to predict toxicological effects based on large-scale DNA chip experiments. In the second example we will show the power of combining sequence analysis with gene and protein expression analysis to understand the effect of drug candidates on biochemical pathways, in order to prioritize drug development.

11.30 Phenotype Microarrays for the Drug Discovery Process
Dr. Barry R. Bochner, Chairman and Vice President of R&D, Biolog, Inc.
Phenotype Microarrays are a new technology platform that allows scientists to test 2,000 properties of a cell simultaneously. The technology can be used to help find new drug targets in cells and to determine gene function by measuring how cellular functions are altered in gene-knockout strains. The technology can also be used to fingerprint the effects of drug leads on cells to determine mode of action, side effects, and synergy or antagonism with other drugs.

12.00 Panel Discussion

12.30 Welcoming luncheon and Grand Opening of Exhibit Area

 

Exploitation of Gene Expression Know-How

14.00 Chair's Remarks
Dr. Joerg Hoheisel, Functional Genome Analysis, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum

14.05 Analysis of Expression Variations in Cancer Tissue by Complex DNA- and Antibody-Microarrays
Dr. Joerg Hoheisel
A set of 600 antibodies has been produced that interacts with proteins whose transcripts showed significant variations in cancer tissues compared to normal material. A microarray of these antibodies is being used for an in-detail comparison of differences on the transcriptional level and real variation of protein expression.

14.35 A Protein-Chip Prototype for Rheumatoid Arthritis
Dr. Sara Mangialaio, Laboratory Head, Immunoassay Development, Novartis Pharma Inc.
The technologies allowing a systematic investigation at genomics and proteomics levels will impact drug discovery, drug development, and drug application. These technologies are providing information on the expression of a large number of genes. However, the cost and the practicability of these technologies are not compatible with large clinical studies where thousand of samples have to be analyzed. Mid- and low-density DNA chips have now been commercialized. These chips have a reduced cost and can be customized to a panel of genes previously identified with high-density screening. Since most biological activities are mediated by protein-protein interactions, a similar technology adapted to proteins would have a high value. Thus, the analysis of protein expression will allow better understanding of drug action mechanism and identification of drug efficacy/toxicity biomarkers. Our objective is to develop a protein chip microarray and to apply it to projects in drug development. We are currently working on a protein chip prototype against markers of rheumatoid arthritis.

15.05 Custom Bead Arrays for Molecular Typing and Protein Profiling
Dr. Michael Seul, President, BioArray Solutions Ltd.
BioArray Solutions' custom bead arrays, produced on-demand and in high volume using semiconductor processing, permit the monitoring of thousands of hybridization events by way of CCD imaging. In ongoing clinical collaborations, our custom bead arrays for DNA typing and protein profiling have delivered novel levels of flexibility, reliability and convenience in quantitative assays. BioArray Solutions' bioanalytical microlab integrates custom bead array technology with microfluidics and quantitative image analysis to provide a universal platform for molecular medicine. In addition, BioArray Solutions' novel optically programmable array technology permits the assembly and real-time manipulation of high-density arrays of cells on the surface of a semiconductor chip and forms the basis for a novel format of quantitative on-chip cellular analysis.

15.35 Protein Biochips as Powerful New Tools in Proteomics
Dr. David Wilson, Zyomyx, Inc.
Novel high-throughput biological applications in the drug discovery process and disease diagnosis require a highly parallel, miniaturized device technology applied to proteins and their biochemical pathways. While technological innovation has adapted the analysis of genetic material to a miniaturized format, the more delicate nature of protein structures has precluded the development of analogous devices for proteins. Protein microarrays have started to emerge recently based on new developments and integration efforts in advanced materials, protein engineering, and detection physics. We have developed high-density protein microarrays for quantification of multiple proteins in complex mixtures. The implementation of new surface chemistries allows the immobilization of exactly defined quantities of proteins on each spot while retaining the full activity of the protein. Using this platform we have developed a multiplexed, microchip-based immunoassay to analyze expression levels of serum proteins. Detection limits on this microassay are equal to or lower than commercial ELISA tests and reduce the sample volume by many orders of magnitude.

16.05 Poster and Exhibit Viewing, Refreshment Break

16.45 Phenotyping: Integrated, Information-Rich Profiling of Proteins, Metabolites, and Cell Populations in Well-Defined Patients
Dr. Michael J. Natan, Chief Technical Officer, SurroMed, Inc.
Discovery and exploitation of biomarkers will significantly alleviate critical bottlenecks in drug discovery and development. In some cases, biomarkers may solely comprise genomic information, but more often, longitudinally-measured comprehensive phenotypic data will be the source of novel biomarkers. SurroMed has assembled a three-pronged platform for biomarker discovery that integrates clinical, bioanaltyical, and bioinformatic sciences. In particular, we have developed: (i) the Surroscan(TM) cytometry system for robust, high-throughput cellular phenotyping; (ii) state-of-the-art mass spectrometry for protein identification and quantitation; (iii) Nanobarcodes(TM) particles for next-generation, very high-level multiplexing in solution; (iv) and over 20 pieces of software working together to integrate and mine the resulting data. This presentation will provide an overview of the technology platform and present results from recent clinical studies.

17.15 SPR Imaging of Chemical Microarrays Used for Drug Discovery
Dr. Holger Ottleben, Director of Biology and Co-founder, Graffinity Pharmaceutical Design GmbH
Chemical microarrays, arrays of small organic compounds, have been recently introduced and represent a novel approach towards the analysis of chemical libraries. Chemical microarrays can be used to analyze the interaction of proteins with organic compounds in a miniaturized and high-throughput fashion. Parallel SPR imaging allows the direct analysis of binding events without the need of reporter systems or tags and is therefore suited for function blind screening. This presentation will discuss the requirements for successfully screening ligand protein interactions on arrays of immobilized organic compounds and will reflect on the importance of surface chemistry for microarrays. In addition, a description of the chemical contents and diversity that can be presented on chemical microarrays will be given, along with case studies on the results of SPR-imaging of chemical microarrays against different drug targets. Finally, the perspectives for microarray-aided drug discovery will be outlined.

17.45 BioChip Net - An Internet Database for the Microarray Community
Dr. Jutta Bachmann, Bachman Science Information Service
The BioChipNet database takes the dynamic development of the biochip field into account; it is intended to be a comprehensive information platform on microarrays and related fields, which will be offered as a searchable internet database to interested companies, institutes, authorities and organizations engaged in biotechnology.

17.55 Panel Discussion

18.25 Close of Day One

 

Tuesday, January 15

7.00-Technology Workshop with
7.45 Continental Breakfast sponsored by

 

Lab-on-a-Chip and Microarray Applications in the Diagnostic Field

8.30 Chair's Remarks
Dr. Tito Bacarese-Hamilton, Department of Biology, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine

8.35 Rapid Identification of Clinically Important Mycobacterial Species Using a Flow-Through Microarray
Dr. Alan Chan, Vice President, Scientific Application Development, PamGene BV
Conventional methods for the identification of mycobacterial species can take several weeks using culture. We will present a faster method of diagnosis using a second-generation microarray platform that would mean better patient management and optimal therapeutic efficacy. Two features that are associated with the flow-through microarray concept, temperature control and hybridization kinetics, will be used to demonstrate our findings.

9.05 An Automated Solution for Utilizing PAN® Oligomicroarrays in the Analysis of Human Leukemia
Dr. Horst Donner, Product Development, Department of DNA Microarrays, MWG Biotech AG
DNA microarrays are the most promising tool in large-scale gene expression analysis. We have established an oligonucleotide-based microarray system based on our in-house DNA synthesis facility as well as the robot and bioinformatics department. One major focus in microarray applications is the genomewide expression analysis of human cancer. Global expression patterns are used to understand pathogenic mechanisms. The goal of most projects is to identify relevant genes and to use microarrays for diagnostic purposes. We have developed an automated microarray workflow on expression profiling in human leukemia patients suffering from AML as well as CML. This workflow includes tissue homogenization, RNA isolation, first- and second-strand cDNA synthesis, T7 amplification, and cy labeling, as well as microarray hybridization and washing. Since linear amplification is discussed as a source of bias, additional experiments in less complex organisms (yeast) were performed in order to establish and demonstrate the reliability and reproducibility of this technique. The experiments performed clearly demonstrate the power of microarrays in clinical diagnosis of human leukemia.

9.35 Antigen Microarrays for the Serodiagnosis of Infectious Diseases
Dr. Tito Bacarese-Hamilton
Microscopic arrays of immobilized nucleic acids have become established as a high-throughput method to provide information about gene function. We have applied this principle to develop a microarray immunoassay for the simultaneous, quantitative determination of IgG and IgM antibodies to various pathogenic antigens. The microarray test format provides equivalent performance to traditional immunoassay tests but has a significant advantage in convenience and cost.

10.05 Poster and Exhibit Viewing, Refreshment Break

10.45 New Oncology Diagnosis Tools for Disease Management of Cancer
Dr. Vincent Fert, Chief Executive Officer, IPSOGEN SAS
IPSOGEN is a biotechnology company developing innovative oncology tools for disease management of cancer. These tools, based on biochips, are derived from the exhaustive molecular analysis of tumors by unique and ultraefficient genomic technologies. Large-scale gene expression analysis provides essential information not only on tumor biology but also in predicting onset and behavior of the disease during the course of treatment. This allows definition of the predisposition of a given individual to developing a cancer, whether or not the tumor is aggressive, and which drugs will be effective in killing those cancer cells. IPSOGEN uses its technology platform to identify gene sets that characterize tumor biology at the individual level and allow clinicians to apply existing and innovative treatments more efficiently.

11.15 Protein Microarray Technology
Dr. Thomas Joos, Head, Biochemistry Department, NMI Natural and Medical Sciences Institute, University of Tuebingen
Biochip technology allows the simultaneous analysis of thousands of molecular parameters within a single experiment. Most of the current applications focus on DNA array technology for gene expression analysis or the detection of single nucleotide polymorphism. However, any kind of ligand-binding assay that relies on the product observation of an immobilized capture molecule and its binding partner from the surrounding solution can be imagined to be performed as an array experiment; e.g., sandwich antibody assays can be miniaturized and parallelized and performed in a microarray format. Autoantigen microarrays can be used to screen in parallel for the presence of autoantibodies from minimal amounts of patient sera. Furthermore, array-based methods allow a highly parallel screening of antibodies for affinity and specificity. Data of protein microarray-based assays that are currently performed at the NMI will be presented and discussed.

11.45 Panel Discussion

12.15 Lunch (on your own)

 

Lab-on-a-Chip in Action:
Point of Need Testing

13.30 Chair's Remarks
Dr. Sabeth Verpoorte, Team Leader, µTAS, Sensors, Actuators, and Microsystems Laboratory, Institute of Microtechnology, University of Neuchâtel

13.35 Detection of Groundwater Pesticides Based on Microarray Technology
Dr. Claus B.V. Christensen, Project Leader, Bio-Array Project, Mikroelektronik Centret, University of Copenhagen
In Europe fresh water is predominantly drawn from groundwater reservoirs. Water wells are, however, more and more often found to be contaminated with pesticides and their breakdown products, now the major cause of water-well closures. By applying microarray technology pesticides and their breakdown products can be monitored cost-effectively. Recent test results have shown an at least 100-fold increase in sensitivity compared to the traditional test systems (HPLC/GC), and moreover it was shown that two or more antibodies could operate at the same time within the same sample without jeopardizing sensitivity. The vision for the microarray-based test system is portability and speed, ultimately undertaking a test for presence of pesticides at, e.g., waterworks or individual water wells.

14.05 Use of DNA Arrays in Environmental Toxicology
Dr. John C. Rockett, Research Biologist, Gamete and Early Embryo Research Branch, Reproductive Toxicology Division, National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
DNA arrays are receiving increasing interest as a possible tool for monitoring the developmental and reproductive impact of xenobiotics and other hazardous materials on human and wildlife populations. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is using commercially available and custom DNA arrays to carry out gene expression profiling of a number of important model and indicator species, including human, rat, mouse, Xenopus, and sheepshead minnow. These arrays are being applied in various biomonitoring studies in anticipation that they will (a) provide a tool for discriminating between different classes of toxicants, (b) help to elucidate mechanisms or modes of action of environmental toxicants in individual species, (c) identify common mechanisms of action across species, and (d) assist in the early detection of toxicant exposure.
This is an abstract of a proposed presentation and does not necessarily reflect EPA policy.

14.35 Detection of Bacterial Contamination of Blood Components
Dr. Juraj Petrik, Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service
The Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service (SNBTS) is actively involved in the development of microarray technology as the next-generation blood-testing platform. As a part of this initiative and within a collaborative agreement with Nanogen Inc., we have been developing an assay for detection of bacterial contamination in blood components, especially in platelet preparations, that need to be stored at room temperature to preserve their functionality. Fast, sensitive assay, which can be automated and used prior to the issue of blood components, is clearly needed. We have targeted mRNA of a dominant bacterial protein for these purposes. Preliminary quantitation of the target mRNA in relevant bacterial species has been carried out using real-time PCR. Target detection in model culture experiments and spiking experiments on blood components using the Nanogen cartridge and workstation will be presented.

15.05 Poster and Exhibit Viewing, Refreshment Break

15.45 Microarray Immunoassays in the Microfluidic Triage Protein Chip
Dr. Kenneth F. Buechler, Vice President, Research and Development, Biosite
The Triage protein chip is a tool for the simultaneous measurement of 100 different proteins by immunoassay. The Triage protein chip immunoassays are performed in a microfluidic plastic chip, and results are achieved for the 100 assays in 15 minutes with picomolar sensitivities directly from several drops of whole blood or plasma. Microfluidic fluid flow is controlled passively in the protein chip by the surface architecture and surface hydrophobicity in the microcapillaries. The immunoassays utilize high-affinity antibodies and a near-infrared fluorescent label, which is read by a portable, battery-powered fluorometer. Technical features and performance aspects of the Triage protein chip will be discussed.

16.15 Title to be Announced
Speaker to be Determined

16.45 Panel Discussion

17.15 Close of Day Two

 

Wednesday, January 16

7.00-Technology Workshop with
7.45 Continental Breakfast

 

Dissecting Signaling Pathway Signatures from Microarray Data

 

8.30 Chair's Remarks
Dr. James Woodgett, Director, UHN Microarray Centre, Ontario Cancer Institute

8.35 MIAME and ArrayExpress
Dr. Helen Parkinson, ArrayExpress Database Biologist, European Bioinformatics Institute
MIAME (Minimum Information about a Microarray Experiment) aims to describe microarray data in terms that ensure optimal interpretability of the results. ArrayExpress (www.ebi.ac.uk/microarray) is a public repository for microarray experiments hosted by the European Bioinformatics Institute. The ArrayExpress model covers the requirements of MIAME, which is developed by the MGED working group.

9.05 Gaining Confidence in Microarray Results
Dr. Sophie E. Wildsmith, Director of Toxicogenomic and Toxicoproteomic Screening, Strategic Technologies, Safety Assessment, GlaxoSmithKline
As technical problems with microarrays have been increasingly resolved over the past few years, the bottleneck for implementing large-scale analyses has moved downstream to data management and interpretation. The numbers of publications by authors using microarrays have increased rapidly, yet few authors have addressed issues such as reproducibility. We have examined our cDNA microarray system in order to identify and minimize sources of error, improving the confidence in our data and generating statistically significant results.

9.35 Linking Genes, Genomes, Expression, and Function (click here to read this slide presentation in PDF format (3877kb))
Dr. John Quackenbush, The Institute for Genomic Research
DNA microarray analysis provides unprecedented quantities of data on gene expression patterns at a genomic scale. The challenge in interpreting these data is to link expression to function and to interpret those data in the context of the genome and its sequence. We will describe our efforts to address these questions and to answer some biologically interesting questions along the way.

10.05 Modeling Biological Responses Using Gene Expression Profiling and Dynamic Bayesian Networks
Dr. Francesco Falciani, Head of Functional Genomics, Lorantis, Ltd.
The application of high-density DNA array technology to gene transcription analyses has been responsible for a real paradigm shift in biology. Many research groups now have the ability to measure the expression of a significant proportion of the human genome in a single experiment, resulting in an unprecedented volume of data being made available to the scientific community. This has, in turn, stimulated the development of algorithms to classify and describe the complexity of the transcriptional response of a biological system, but little has been done so far towards developing the analytical tools necessary to exploit this information for revealing interactions between the components of a cellular system. Our aim is to identify transcriptional networks based on large volumes of gene expression data. In order to test the validity of our approach we have chosen a well-established model of T cell activation and monitored a set of relevant genes across a time series. We then applied dynamic Bayesian network modeling and linear dynamical systems to reverse engineer genetic networks from expression profiling data. These models have produced testable hypotheses, which have the potential for rapid experimental validation.

10.35 Poster and Exhibit Viewing, Refreshment Break

11.00 Practical Considerations for Building Gene Expression Databases for Mining Clinical and Biological Data
Dr. James Woodgett
The advent of economical microarrays has resulted in increasingly complex data sets being accumulated by both individuals and institutions. Effective planning and population of databases to handle this deluge of information and to allow maximal value for subsequent mining are essential. Incorporation of filtering and statistical confidence parameters is critical to obtain sufficient trust in data submitted to the database by others. Our experience, derived from supporting basic and experienced users and groups, will be related along with examples of workgroup/workflow practices, data visualization, refinements to existing database solutions, and approaches for identifying signaling pathway signatures.

11.30 Diagnostic Prediction of Tumors Using Gene Expression Profiling and Artificial Neural Networks
Dr. Carsten Peterson, Professor, Department of Theoretical Physics, Lund University
A method for gene expression tumor classification based upon artificial neural networks (ANN) will be presented. It is illustrated on tumor microarray data from small, round, blue cell tumors (SRBCT) of childhood that occasionally present diagnostic dilemmas in clinical practice. In addition to accurate classification of 63 training SRBCT samples, the ANN models successfully classified additional 20 blinded test SRBCT samples and rejected 5 non-SRBCT samples. Using an ANN-based gene extraction algorithm, a key set of 96 genes for the classification is identified.

12.00 Panel Discussion

12.30 Close of Conference

Registrants of Lab-on-a-chip and Microarrays 
may attend the Wednesday afternoon session 
of Integrated Bioinformatics at no extra cost.

Corporate Sponsor Biography

Agilent Technologies Inc. is a diversified technology company, resulting from Hewlett-Packard Company's strategic realignment into two fully independent companies. Agilent Technologies is a global leader in designing and manufacturing of test, measurement and monitoring instruments, systems and solutions, and semiconductor and optical components. The company serves markets that include life sciences, healthcare, communications and electronics.
Agilent's Chemical Analysis Group is a leading provider of Life Science and Chemical analytical measurement and information solutions to scientific laboratories in industry, government and academia. As a high growth technology company, Agilent Technologies is committed to accelerating the pace of disease and drug discovery.
Agilent develops and commercializes established or new technologies that greatly enhance the productivity of life science research. Continually we are improving or adding to those solutions already in place such as lab-on-a-chip application products, liquid chromatograph separations, mass spectrometry characterizations, and networked data systems.
Agilent now proudly introduces the development and commercialization of our latest technologies - DNA microarrays and related bioinformatic software which are beginning to revolutionize the disease and drug discovery process.
Information about Agilent chemical analysis products and services can be found on the Web at http://www.chem.agilent.com/cag/products/products.html.

Corporate Sponsor Biography

Amersham Pharmacia Biotech is a leading global provider of biotechnology systems, products and services used in gene and protein research, drug discovery and development, and biopharmaceutical manufacture.
Our vision is to enable the new era of molecular medicine in which the genetic basis for disease will be better understood, leading to earlier and more accurate diagnosis, and more effective and personalized treatment.

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HOTEL INFORMATION
Swissôtel Zurich
Am Marktplatz Oerlikon
CH-8050 Zurich, Switzerland
T: 41-1-317-3111 o F: 41-1-312-4468
Room Rate: 245 CHF S/D
Cut-off Date: December 14, 2001

Please call the hotel directly to make your room reservation. Identify yourself as a Cambridge Healthtech Institute conference attendee to receive the reduced room rate. Reservations made after the cut-off date or after the group room block has been filled (whichever comes first) will be accepted on a space-and-rate-availability basis. Rooms are limited, so please book early.

AIRLINE INFORMATION
Great International Travel is offering special rates to Zurich from the
United States. To make your reservations, please email jdunn@greatintltravel.com

CALL FOR EXHIBITORS
This conference details the latest in microarray technology and will provide new insight into their latest innovations and applications. The audience will consist of scientific researchers, executives, managers and lab directors from pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, as well as academic and research institutes to visit the exhibit hall. We strongly encourage any company with services or products related to the application of microarrays for post-genomic applications specifically related to proteomics, genomics, HTS applications, drug discovery, automation, and diagnostics to consider sponsoring or exhibiting at this event. Please contact Mike Handy at 781-972-5492 for more information or to reserve a booth. Registrations received by September 28, 2001 can save your company up to $750!

CALL FOR POSTERS
Cambridge Healthtech Institute encourages attendees to gain further exposure by presenting their work in the poster sessions. Please fill out the registration form, with the poster title and primary author. To ensure inclusion in the conference binder, a one-page summary must be submitted and registration must be paid in full by December 7, 2001. Click here for poster instructions