Biological sequence search firm sets new standard for integrated sequence patent content, searching, and analysis

Westborough, Massachusetts - March 20, 2006 – Gene-IT today announced the launch of GenomeQuest™ 3.0 an easy-to-use biological search solution that accepts text or sequence queries to search continuously-updated sequence databases and renders results computed by a large-scale sequence comparison engine.

The new release includes sequence patent content that previously could not be searched, including over 25 million sequences found in 148,000+ patent documents, consistently annotated and organized. An additional 278,000 patent documents are referenced and organized into 85,000 patent families. The new release also adds search methods to find SNPs, Motifs, RNAi Probes, Diagnostic Primers, Micro Array targets, and of course, whole genes, enabling quick translation of research discoveries into Intellectual Property (IP) opportunities.

Ronald Ranauro, CEO of Gene-IT, said, “Our customers asked us to create a total solution that fully integrates search, analytics and trustable sequence content available via a single interface. The new archive results from a massive screening of all U.S. patents to find documents containing bio-sequences, combined with direct feeds from EPO and other foreign public sequence repositories.

He added, “Our effort showed that sequences published in patents are growing worldwide at a pace of nearly 4 percent monthly, and this vital new information is frequently missed by front-line researchers who rely on old tools or stale databases, or are dependent on specialist search teams with competing demands on their time. With GenomeQuest 3.0, researchers and attorneys can now not only ask the questions they need, and get the latest and most complete answers – they can also do it themselves, without any intermediaries or delays.

Highlights of the GenomeQuest 3.0 include:

· New sequence patent archive: consistently annotated and searchable by text and/or sequence, including searchable claims

· New search methods: Find SNPs, Motifs, RNAi, diagnostic probes in both a biological and IP context

· Integration API: to integrate customers’ own data with full set of GenomeQuest searchable databases