NanoString’s CosMx SMI Achieves Whole Transcriptome Imaging at Single-Cell Resolution

January 7, 2024

Major milestone marked by first public dataset released for CosMx Whole Transcriptome Panel with additional data forthcoming at the AGBT Meeting

NanoString Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: NSTG), a leading provider of life science tools for discovery and translational research, today announced the release of the first public dataset of the whole transcriptome obtained at true single-cell resolution on the CosMx™ Spatial Molecular Imager (SMI). The data will be highlighted at the 42nd annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference 2024 in San Francisco during NanoString’s corporate presentation on Wednesday, January 10, 2024, at 5:15 pm PT.

CosMx Whole Transcriptome Panel Achieves Scientific Moonshot

NanoString is the first company to achieve the scientific breakthrough of providing true single-cell whole transcriptome imaging. This technological milestone was accomplished using the CosMx SMI platform allowing researchers to simultaneously visualize the expression of every protein-coding gene in the human genome in situ, providing the ultimate capability for single cell spatial biology.

The CosMx Whole Transcriptome Panel transforms the potential to extract biological insights from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue samples. By imaging the expression of almost 19,000 genes at once, this product will provide almost 40x the coverage of assays currently marketed by competing platforms. Researchers can now explore millions of cells per experiment, identify rare cell types, and understand cell-to-cell interactions in spatial context, providing a comprehensive understanding of cellular landscapes that has never before been accessible. These capabilities will be available at lower cost per single cell while providing higher cellular throughput than traditional single cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq). NanoString plans to commercially launch the CosMx Whole Transcriptome Panel in 2025.

NanoString is marking this milestone achievement with the public release of a whole transcriptome CosMx SMI dataset generated from FFPE samples of healthy human pancreas tissue. This first-of-its-kind dataset demonstrates the functional biology of the pancreas revealing rare cell types that are typically lost with traditional scRNA-seq methods. This dataset was generated using a prototype version of the panel and related software, and the performance of the new capability is expected to improve in the full commercial version, becoming even more impressive over time.

“Using the CosMx Whole Transcriptome Panel, our group can now address fundamental questions regarding the interactions between anatomy and function within pancreatic islets that are simply not possible with lower plex (< 1000-plex) imaging technologies,” said Grant R. Kolar, M.D., Ph.D., Director, Research Microscopy and Histology Core at the Saint Louis University School of Medicine. “We anticipate that this transformative technology will have profound impact on the way we view normal islet physiology, as well as yield important, novel insights into the pathophysiology of diabetes, enabling the development of better treatments, and perhaps even a cure.”

Anticipating intense interest from the scientific community, NanoString will feature the Whole Transcriptome capabilities of CosMx SMI during presentations at the upcoming AGBT meeting in Orlando, Florida, Feb. 5-8, 2024. Customers who have gained access to prototypes of the CosMx Whole Transcriptome Panel will present datasets generated on pancreatic cancer, colorectal cancer, and human brain.

Upcoming launch of CosMx 6,000-plex assay

NanoString also remains on track to begin commercial shipment of the CosMx Human 6K Discovery Panel beginning in Q1 2024. This innovative panel, offering 6x higher plex than current CosMx SMI panels, will empower researchers to delve deeper into cell states and function, explore intricate cell-to-cell interactions, and deliver new insights into spatial cellular responses at an unprecedented level.

About NanoString

NanoString Technologies, a leader in spatial biology, offers an ecosystem of innovative discovery and translational research solutions, empowering our customers to map the universe of biology. The GeoMx® Digital Spatial Profiler is a flexible and consistent solution combining the power of whole tissue imaging with gene expression and protein data for spatial whole transcriptomics and proteomics. The CosMx™ Spatial Molecular Imager is a single-cell imaging platform powered by spatial multiomics enabling researchers to map single cells in their native environments to extract deep biological insights and novel discoveries from one experiment. The AtoMx™ Spatial Informatics Platform is a cloud-based informatics solution with advanced analytics and global collaboration capabilities, enabling powerful spatial biology insights anytime, anywhere. At the foundation of our research tools is our nCounter® Analysis System, which offers a secure way to easily profile the expression of hundreds of genes, proteins, miRNAs, or copy number variations, simultaneously with high sensitivity and precision.

For more information, please visit www.nanostring.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include statements regarding our plans to commercially launch and ship new product offerings in the future and expectations about demand for our products. Such statements are based on current assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, include market acceptance of our products; adverse conditions in the general domestic and global economic markets; the effects of ongoing litigation; the impact of competition; the impact of expanded sales, marketing, and product development on operating expenses; delays or other unforeseen problems with respect to manufacturing and product development; as well as the other risks set forth in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. NanoString Technologies disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

NanoString, NanoString Technologies, the NanoString logo, GeoMx, AtoMx and nCounter are trademarks or registered trademarks of NanoString Technologies, Inc. in various jurisdictions.

This news release may include information regarding CosMx™ SMI products for RNA detection, which products are not available in the member states of the European Unified Patent Court, as further described here.

Doug Farrell
Vice President, Investor Relations & Corporate Communications
Dfarrell@nanostring.com
Phone: 206-602-1768
Source: NanoString Technologies, Inc.