Skyline Diagnostics has won the BioBusiness Start-up of the Year Award 2007. The award was presented during to BioBusiness Event on 31 May by Joke van Antwerpen, director of the Amsterdam Innovatie Motor. The award is worth 10,000 euro.

Skyline Diagnostics, located in Rotterdam, develops new diagnostic tests for certain types of cancer, among which certain brain tumors and different forms of blood cancer (acute myeloid leukaemia and Kahler disease. The company makes use of a micro array technology, which can test the activity of thousands of genes simultaneously. The first diagnostic test for acute myeloid leukaemia will be brought on the market in 2008, to be expected.

The BioBusiness Start-up of the Year Award 2007 is an initiative of Niaba, BioFarmind and Hyphen Project Management. In total eight young life sciences organisations competed for the award. Three nominees could present their organisation during the BioBusiness Event. A jury made out of executives of the company life judges the plans and presentations. The jury praised the three nominated companies. “These are three great examples of a new, promising generation of Dutch entrepreneurs in Life Sciences,” according to jury chairman Dinko Valerio. “These motivated, professional entrepreneurs have all opportunities to build their company to a world leader in their field.” After intensive consultation the jury decided to assign the award to Skyline Diagnostics. The jury was impressed by the way the company used the knowledge of the departments Haematology and Bio-informatics of the Erasmus Medical Centre into commercial possibilities. “The company is very market directed and develops products that can generate a profit quickly, “ according to Valerio.

The BioBusiness Start-up of the Year Award 2007 is presented during the successful BioBusiness Event at the RAI. This is a satellite congress of Bio Career Event, the network event for the Life Sciences. In total 2,000 visitors visited the Bio Career and BioBusiness Event 2007.