Beckman Coulter Inc., which sells testing equipment to medical laboratories and drug companies, said yesterday that Amin I. Khalifa would step down as chief financial officer.
Beckman Coulter Inc., which sells testing equipment to medical laboratories and drug companies, won a $934 million jury verdict, which included $931 million in punitive damages, from Flextronics International Ltd.
For now Agitar offers testing only for programs written in Java, leaving plenty of room for its two-year-old San Francisco rival, Coverity, which sells testing software for C and C++, the building blocks of the majority of business and academic software.
Some companies, like Genelex and Genova Diagnostics of Asheville, N.C., which sells tests under the names Genovations and Great Smokies Diagnostic, run batteries of genetic tests and provide customers with the results, along with suggestions on how to make lifestyle changes to help reduce disease risk.
"Unfortunately, what goes into the national database are mostly reference swabs of people who are going to prison," said Jay Whitt of the company DNA:SI Labs, which sells DNA testing and database services to police departments.
A good example is the approach taken by Genomic Health, which sells a test that identifies a gene strongly correlated with breast cancer.
But the commercial, sponsored by Myriad Genetics, which sells the test, is stirring protests from some cancer and genetics specialists, and it has brought on an inquiry by Connecticut's attorney general.
Becton Dickinson & Co (BDX.N), which sells diagnostic tests for infectious diseases and cancer, as well as medical supplies and laboratory equipment, does not expect a rebound in the United States, said Chief Executive Ed Ludwig.
"We are still waiting, holding our breath for the Bilski case," said Kari Stefansson, head of research at DeCode Genetics, which sells disease risk tests similar to those sold by Myriad.
He is now the chief medical director and chief operating officer at QTC Management, which sells disability-examination testing and other medical services.
Representatives for Accumetrics, which sells a blood test, and Corgenix, which sells a urine test, maintained that there was value in determining how well aspirin worked in individual patients, and said more recent research on the issue has moved away from a stark determination of whether someone is resistant to aspirin.
