Frankfurt / Singapore – January 13, 2009 – Singapore-based Curiox Biosystems, a portfolio company of Germany’s Nanostart AG, has announced its successful market debut in Singapore. The Singapore Eye Research Institute (SERI) is now using its DropArray™ station to perform analyses on microliter-sized samples of human tear fluid. The DropArray™ solution is markedly superior to the conventional systems used by SERI until now.

 

With the new technology from Curiox, researchers at SERI can for the first time use immunoassays for clinical research purposes. Because of the small sample quantities available, this has not been possible until now. The Curiox bioassays enable clinical researchers to study and examine ocular diseases more precisely and efficiently than before, which in turn is essential for developing their proper diagnosis and treatment.

Namyong Kim, CEO of the company founded in April 2008, spoke about the cooperation: “The fact that SERI is using DropArray for clinical research with precious human samples shows the reliability and credibility of the DropArray technology and products.” He went on to say that “the sales in Korea and Singapore, the growing number of test customers, and most of all the enthusiasm expressed by users demonstrates that our technology is gaining more and more attention in the market.”

“Curiox is an impressive case in point of the positive performance which an Asian high-tech start-up can achieve. The company was only founded in the spring of last year as a spin-off from the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, and already now – barely nine months later – it is generating a series of product sales. This performance underscores the potential of new high technologies in the region,” added Marco Beckmann, CEO of Nanostart AG.

SERI is the national research institute for ophthalmic and vision research in Singapore. It serves as the research institute of the Singapore National Eye Centre, and is directly affiliated with the only two medical schools in Singapore: the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, as well the Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School. SERI has undertaken research collaboration with local clinical ophthalmic centers and biomedical research institutions, as well as major eye centers and research institutes throughout the world. Some of their world-renowned industry collaborators include Novartis Pharma AG, Allergan, Bausch & Lomb, Novartis, Pfizer and Carl Zeiss.

The new technology from Curiox enables the miniaturized testing of aqueous biosamples and thus a reduction in the quantities of sample and reagents required by a factor of up to one thousand compared to conventional systems, while simultaneously reducing reaction times by a factor of up to ten. It has various applications in the life sciences.

About Curiox:
Curiox Biosystems has a vision to accelerate the progress of life sciences and drug discovery through better miniaturization. Curiox is a bioinstrumentation company enabling the miniaturization of heterogeneous bioassay for researchers working in life sciences, drug discovery, and diagnostics. Curiox’s patented miniaturization platform, DropArray™, provides up to 1,000 times savings in sample and reagent consumption, and up to 10 times reduction in assay time. The company is based in Singapore, the biomedical hub of Southeast Asia. The company is a spin-off from Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN) backed primarily by Nanostart and Exploit Technologies, the commercializing arm of Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR). For further information, please visit www.curiox.com.

About Nanostart:
Nanostart AG is the world’s leading nanotechnology investment company. The Frankfurt-based company provides venture capital financing for nanotechnology companies in various growth phases. It also provides the benefits of its experience and expertise to developers of financial instruments and to investors in the nanotechnology sector. For further information about the company, please visit www.nanostart.de.

Disclaimer:
This notice constitutes neither an offer to sell nor a solicitation of offers to purchase or subscribe to securities. There will be no public offering of securities of Nanostart AG in conjunction with the existing listing of its shares in the “Entry Standard” segment of the regulated unofficial market (Freiverkehr) on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. This notice does not constitute a securities prospectus. Neither this notice nor the information contained within is intended for direct or indirect distribution within the United States of America, Canada, Australia or Japan.

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Nanostart AG
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