Skuldtech has developed a high level of expertise in animal studies and can provide biomarkers and diagnostics leading to animal healthcare management within the challenge of breeding in Quality, Safety, Secure conditions, and Traceability.   

In any species of animal, even with no prior knowledge of particular genomes, Skuldtech can provide its sponsors with biomarkers for diagnosis and leading edge diagnostics in different fields of application.

Using biomarkers or diagnostics developed by Skuldtech, breeders are able to detect early infections, to select animal line resistant to diseases, but also individuals through sex identification tests when breeding conditions need, in aquaculture for instance. 

The products developed by Skuldtech are able to :

• increase the production in a biological balance, 
• manage and monitor diseases and therapies, 
  
• respect animal welfare, 
  
• reach marketing optimal competitive conditions.
  
   
  

As partner, Skuldtech is involved or has been recently involved in different research programs, including several projects granted by French national grants Oseo, FUI, ANR, etc. These programs include infectiology and animal healthcare management, the development of diagnostic tests, allowing a quick and specific identification of biomarkers or pathogenic organisms.   

 
Therefore, Skuldtech is focusing its biomarker strategy for the companion diagnosis purpose on gene expression changes under drugs regimes. Gene expression signatures can predict patients' response to treatment. These gene expression changes can also be used as predictors and modulators of cellular sensitivity to cancer chemotherapeutics, for instance.

Hence, Skuldtech has recently identified efficiency biomarkers associated with the development of a new vaccine. These data had been validated on several other usually used and commercialized vaccines. Thus, these efficiency biomarkers could be associated with an immune positive response of the animal after a vaccination protocol.

 

Skuldtech has a great expertise in collaboration covering a broad range of different partners and fields of application in veterinary areas :

• Ifremer Tahiti and the French Polynesian government in order to improve the peal quality in French Polynesian pearl oyster breeders,,
• IRD (Institut de Recherche pour le Développement - Montpellier, France) to develop a new diagnosis kit enabling early fish (Arowana) sex identification ,
• French company Virbac and IRD to develop a new vaccine against canine leishmania and to identify vaccine efficiency biomarkers, which could be linked to an immune positive response of the animal 
• Ifremer Palavas Laboratory (France) to develop a new detection nodavirus diagnosis kit (this diagnostic is now available) 
• E.U. & OIE Community Reference Laboratory for bivalve mollusk diseases (Laboratoire Génétique et Pathologie - Ifremer, La Tremblade - France) to develop a new detection oyster herpes virus (OsHV-1) kit (this diagnostic is now available) 
• Ifremer Montpellier Laboratory (France) project to identify natural genes of resistance in order to develop sustainable shrimp genitor lines, which would be able to resist to pathogens epidemic plague avoiding the use of additional chemical treatment such as antibiotic or other chemicals ,
• CIRAD (Centre de coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement, France) in order to identify Trypanosomia Bovis biomarkers and breed resistant animals ,
• Laboratoire des Courses Hippiques (LCH, France) in order to identify EPO drug abuse biomarkers in aim of preventing doping in the horse-racing industry ,
• ...,

Skuldtech has also developed an expertise providing diagnostics allowing the detection of specific DNA/RNA sequences or specific pathogens or sex identification in specific species. This expertise can be adapted to any pathogen or to any emergent epizooty. Such approach has been validated for the detection of Nodavirus (available), the detection of WSSV and IHHNV viruses (available), the sex identification for Arowana fishes (Arapaima gigas, available in 2012)…

Moreover, the company provides a “biomolecular techniques” kit allowing the training of several molecular biology techniques. To discover this product, please visit the Training services page.

If you require more information concerning these products or these partnerships or for setting-up a new collaboration, please contact the Business Development Department of Skuldtech (T: +33(0)467 419 748, Email: info@skuldtech.com).