Canon U.S. Life Sciences And The University Of Maryland Launch New Collaboration

Joint Team to Develop Automated Machine Designed to Expedite the Diagnosis of Infectious Diseases

LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y. – Canon U.S. Life Sciences, Inc., a subsidiary of Canon U.S.A., Inc., the University of Maryland have launched a new research collaboration to develop a highly automated system providing rapid infectious disease diagnosis. Utilizing Canon U.S. Life Sciences’ proprietary genetic analysis system, the project aims to expedite the delivery of infectious disease test results while also simplifying the test process to allow a variety of clinical staff to perform automated disease diagnosis.

The research team is led by Hiroshi Inoue, senior fellow, Canon U.S. Life Sciences, and Dr. William Bentley, chair of the Fischell Department of Bioengineering in the university’s A. James Clark School of Engineering. Together with co-researchers Dr. Keith Herold and Dr. Ian White, both of Maryland’s Fischell Department of Bioengineering, they will pioneer the use of microfluidic chip technology in disposable testing cartridges containing human blood samples.

Leveraging Canon U.S. Life Sciences’ genetic analysis technology, the high-throughput cartridge system will identify bacterial pathogens in human blood by using genetic matching technology, thereby cutting the length of time required to test a sample from several days to one hour.

“Through our continued research in the area of molecular diagnostics, we are excited to be aligning our efforts with the University of Maryland,” said Takayoshi Hanagata Hanagata, president, Canon U.S. Life Sciences, Inc. “The combination of Canon U.S. Life Sciences core technologies and the University’s leading-edge research capabilities, will allow us to create new diagnostic applications designed to offer enhanced flexibility as well as reduced costs and biomedical waste.”

“The establishment of our relationship with Canon U.S. Life Sciences represents a major industrial collaboration for the University and the Fischell Department of Bioengineering,” said Dr. Bentley. “Leveraging our combined research capabilities is intended to advance the commercial portfolio of Canon U.S. Life Sciences while also assisting the university in its mission to create innovative knowledge and educational opportunities for its students.”

For additional information about Canon U.S.A and Canon Inc.’s array of imaging technologies visit www.usa.canon.com.

About Canon U.S. Life Sciences, Inc.

Founded in 2002 and located in Rockville, Maryland, Canon U.S. Life Sciences, Inc., is a subsidiary of Canon U.S.A., Inc., dedicated to exploring potential applications of Canon’s core technologies to the field of life sciences. Canon U.S. Life Sciences identifies and commercially develops life sciences solutions with potential applications in diagnostics and medical instrumentation. Additional information can be found at www.uslifesciences.com.
About The University of Maryland:

The University of Maryland is the state’s flagship university and one of the nation’s preeminent public research universities. Ranked No. 18 among public universities by U.S. News & World Report, it has 32 academic programs in the U.S News Top 10 and 73 in the Top 25. The Institute of Higher Education (Jiao Tong University, Shanghai), which ranks the world’s top universities based on research, puts Maryland at No. 36 in the world and No. 12 among U.S. public universities. The university has produced six Nobel laureates, seven Pulitzer Prize winners, more than 40 members of the national academies and scores of Fulbright scholars. The university is recognized for its diversity, with underrepresented students comprising one-third of the student population. For more information about the University of Maryland, visit www.umd.edu.
About Canon U.S.A., Inc.

Canon U.S.A., Inc., is a leading provider of consumer, business-to-business, and industrial digital imaging solutions. Its parent company, Canon Inc. (NYSE:CAJ), a top patent holder of technology, ranked fourth overall in the U.S. in 2010†, with global revenues of more than US $45 billion and is listed as number five in the computer industry on Fortune Magazine’s World’s Most Admired Companies 2011 list. Canon U.S.A. is committed to the highest levels of customer satisfaction and loyalty, providing 100 percent U.S.-based consumer service and support for all of the products it distributes. At Canon, we care because caring is essential to living together in harmony. Founded upon a corporate philosophy of Kyosei – “all people, regardless of race, religion or culture, harmoniously living and working together into the future” – Canon U.S.A. supports a number of social, youth, educational and other programs, including environmental and recycling initiatives. Additional information about these programs can be found at www.usa.canon.com/kyosei. To keep apprised of the latest news from Canon U.S.A., sign up for the Company’s RSS news feed by visiting www.usa.canon.com/rss.
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† Based on weekly patent counts issued by United States Patent and Trademark Office.

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