Good Start Genetics, whose genetic carrier screening platform is offered at fertility centers, announced it is tapping Roche to market the technology to obstetricians and general practitioners in the U.S.
Roche will market the GeneVu platform alongside its own Harmony noninvasive prenatal test, according to a statement. While Harmony specifically detects Down syndrome, Edward syndrome and Patau syndrome, GeneVu offers an extensive number of additional tests that patients and physicians may choose from, including ethnicity-specific tests for blood disorders.
"Offering GeneVu, our comprehensive and highly accurate carrier screening test service for inherited genetic disorders, with Roche's Harmony NIPT service, which assesses the risk of fetal trisomy 21, 18, 13, and sex chromosome aneuploidy, provides the 20,000+ OBGYNs in the United States with two best-in-class solutions for their expectant moms,” said Good Start Genetics CEO Jeffrey Luber in a statement.
GeneVu uses next-generation sequencing to detect mutations and carriers during prenatal testing. It is approved in the U.S. as a lab-developed test and is not FDA-approved for commercial distribution.
Last month, Good Start launched a low-cost, NGS test on Amazon. VeriYou, initially introduced in October, is available for $149 and tests for cystic fibrosis and spinal muscular atrophy. The partnership, the online retailer’s first with a genetic testing company, aims to widen access to carrier screening for these two disorders.