Thermo Fisher and NX Prenatal to develop clinical mass spectrometry-based workflows for monitoring maternal and fetal health during pregnancy and evaluating risk of complications. SAN JOSE, Calif., - Thermo Fisher Scientific, the world leader in serving science, and NXPrenatal Inc., a recognized leader in the detection, monitoring and management of pregnancy-related complications using novel exosome-based methods, have entered into a collaboration to develop clinical mass spectrometry-based proteomics assays to monitor fetal health?in utero?and assess the risk of adverse outcomes, including preterm birth and preeclampsia. This new collaboration recognizes the challenges faced by medical professionals who have few tools available for noninvasive risk stratification for adverse pregnancy outcomes. By combining NX Prenatal's NeXosome platform with?Thermo Fisher's?leading?liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) instrumentation, the workflows can address the reliability, accuracy and precision of the analytical solutions currently available to clinical scientists. "Our collaboration with NX Prenatal is aiming to enable us to better evaluate maternal and fetal biomarkers during pregnancy that correlate with adverse outcomes, such as preterm birth," said?Brad Hart, senior director, clinical research, chromatography and mass spectrometry, Thermo Fisher Scientific. "The co-development of a commercially available clinical mass spectrometry-based proteomics assay has the potential to provide a diagnostic solution to both clinical scientists and medical professionals offering more confidence in the evaluation of novel biomarkers that can support a safe delivery and healthy future for mother and baby." "At NX Prenatal, we are developing novel assays and noninvasive early warning systems to detect subtle molecular changes in the maternal-fetal environment, all with the goal of improving the rate of healthy pregnancy outcomes," said?Brian D. Brohman, CEO of NX Prenatal. "Our collaboration with Thermo Fisher Scientific brings together our novel NeXosome platform with their leading analytical technology with the goal of optimizing clinical mass spectrometry-based workflows, in an effort to provide the precision necessary for personalized diagnostic solutions to improve health outcomes for both mother and child." The unique NeXosome technology is used to enrich maternal blood samples for microparticles, such as exosomes, which play key roles in maintaining certain balances between the mother and fetus during pregnancy. Aberrations in these balances have been shown to correlate with the likelihood of adverse pregnancy outcomes. Merging the NeXosome platform with Thermo Fisher LC-MS technology has the potential to generate fast, efficient and accurate data for the analysis of exosome-derived proteomic biomarkers, which may lead to increased information about maternal and fetal health during pregnancy. Ultimately, the analysis has the potential to support obstetrical care decisions in conjunction with traditional clinical assessments. About Thermo Fisher Scientific Thermo?Fisher?Scientific Inc. is the world leader in serving science, with revenues of more than?$24 billion?and approximately 70,000 employees globally. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. We help our customers accelerate life sciences research, solve complex analytical challenges, improve patient diagnostics, deliver medicines to market and increase laboratory productivity. Through our premier brands ??Thermo?Scientific, Applied Biosystems, Invitrogen,?Fisher?Scientific and Unity Lab Services ? we offer an unmatched combination of innovative technologies, purchasing convenience and comprehensive services. For more information, please visit?www.thermofisher.com. Media Contact Information: Laura Bright Thermo Fisher Scientific +1 562-335-8318 laura.bright@thermofisher.com Ronan Muir BioStrata +44 (0) 1223 627133 rmuir@biostratamarketing.com