June 27, 2005 - SEATTLE - Deemed "a uniquely accessible product solution that stands apart from its competitors," the GeneSifter microarray data analysis system will be honored with the 2005 Frost & Sullivan "Best Practices Award for Product Innovation" in its Bioinformatics in Drug Discovery category. The award will be presented to the makers of GeneSifter, VizX Labs, on Tuesday, November 8th, at the 2005 Excellence in Pharmaceuticals & Life Sciences Awards Banquet in Naples, Florida.

GeneSifter is a web-based system for analyzing the huge amounts of data produced by microarray gene expression experiments. Accessible any time, from any computer, GeneSifter links powerful statistical tools with even more powerful tools for determining the biological significance of data, and with the many gene annotation resources in public and private databases on the Internet. Unlike other such systems, whose complex interfaces require hours of training to use effectively, GeneSifter's intuitive interface means that researchers can make real use of the system quickly and easily.

In announcing the award, Frost & Sullivan noted "the flexible nature of web-based GeneSifter enables scientists to better understand the biology behind their gene expression data." Customers using GeneSifter products have testified to improved research, savings in training time, reduction in costs, and faster results. "Our research has found that GeneSifter, which brings the power of highly sophisticated bioinformatics tools to the scientist's workbench, is today being used across all the major countries of the world," observed Frost & Sullivan Healthcare Analyst Raghavendra Chitta.

Frost & Sullivan, a global leader in growth consulting, presents the award each year to the company that has demonstrated excellence in new products and technologies within their industry. To qualify, candidates must meet predetermined criteria set by industry analysts. To choose a recipient of this Award, the analyst team tracks all new product launches, R&D spending, products in development, and new product features and modifications. All new product launches and new products in development in each company are compared and evaluated based on degree of innovation and customer satisfaction.

"This important award recognizes GeneSifter as an innovative technology advancement," said VizX CEO Tom Ranken. "It further validates our technology leadership position in the microarray marketplace, and clearly demonstrates that we are responsive to the needs of our highly sophisticated customer base."

Users "need not even have to concern themselves with purchasing the software or configuring their systems to run it," noted Frost & Sullivan Chief Analyst Raghavendra Chitta, because "VizX Labs has also launched the GeneSifter Data Center, an online library of microarray data with complete analysis tools, which is continually being updated with newer microarray data from academic institutions throughout the world."

"GeneSifter raises the bar for the microarray industry's support of biomedical research," observed Elon Gasper, VizX Senior Vice President, "because it delivers what many have promised: the ability to manage data and handle analysis workflows via an accessible, full-bodied application with associated data repository. Moreover, its web-based architecture and simple individual accounts model enables core facilities to deploy it more rapidly and with far less resultant tech support burden."

"In giving this award to VizX Labs, Frost & Sullivan applauds the company's dedicated efforts in developing user friendly, Web-based tools that empower biologists on the bench and help them realise the true promise of bioinformatics software tools," concludes Mr. Chitta. "Backed by its experienced management team and its commitment to innovation, VizX Labs is poised for success in the high potential and rapidly growing bioinformatics arena."

GeneSifter is compatible with Affymetrix GeneChip®, GE CodeLink™, ABI, Agilent, and others, as well as custom-spotted array files and their associated annotation. Other award-winning features include:

• The One-Click Gene Summary™ brings together annotation and links from 10 external databases, such as GenBank, Unigene, OMIM, Homologene, NetAffx™, Pubgene™, etc.;
• Gene Ontology and Pathway Reports employ z-scores and other statistics to distinguish biological themes of importance in expression profiles;
• Powerful R-based analytics (RMA, PAM, ANOVA, CLARA, Benjamini and Hochberg, etc.) determine statistical significance;
• True real-time collaboration via concurrent usage with simultaneous logins on one account.

The GeneSifter product line now encompasses:

• GeneSifter Lab Edition, for individual researchers using Affymetrix GeneChip or other microarrays in gene expression studies;
• GeneSifter Core Edition, for core facilities who prefer to administering their own accounts while taking advantage of GeneSifter's intuitive design and web-based accessibility to reduce training and support costs;
• GeneSifter JumpStart, for Affymetrix GeneChip users seeking to accelerate their initial analysis efforts;
• GeneSifter Data Center, an opportunity for researchers to analyze high-quality, published data using the GeneSifter system, and for those who have already produced microarray data to make it available to the public in the most robust way available.
• MicroarraySuccess.com, a recently launched free web site for researchers new to microarrays.