Aerocrine AB has announced that Aerocrine and Panasonic Shikoku Electronics Co. Ltd (PSEC) have entered into a long-term agreement to develop, manufacture and market new generation products for airway inflammation monitoring using exhaled nitric oxide.

PSEC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Panasonic Corporation, is a world-class electronic development, manufacturing and marketing corporation with extensive experience in designing and manufacturing consumer and professional medical devices. Aerocrine is a clinically-based medical technology corporation that discovered exhaled nitric oxide monitoring for clinical use in asthma care and leads the market with proprietary technology and products for airway inflammation measurement.

Under the agreement, Aerocrine and PSEC will collaborate to develop future generations of products for airway inflammation monitoring for both clinical and personal use. PSEC will be responsible for the worldwide manufacture and supply of the products and Aerocrine will be responsible for regulatory approvals, method development and global commercialization.

"PSEC has identified airway inflammation monitoring using exhaled nitric oxide as a very significant growth opportunity both for clinical use and for use by patients in the home", says Kazuya Nakaya, Managing Director and Member of the Board of PSEC. "Aerocrine is the global market leader with strong intellectual property and know-how and we look forward to working together."

"The market for airway inflammation monitoring in clinical practice is developing rapidly. To maintain our position as market leaders and continue to lead the technical development for growing applications and new customer groups, we will benefit from working with a strong partner," says Paul de Potocki, CEO of Aerocrine AB. "For us, PSEC is the ideal partner with its wide technical expertise and successful history of medical device manufacturing."Asthma is one of the world's most widespread diseases, affecting around 300 million people. Measurements of exhaled nitric oxide, eNO, can help to identify ongoing airway inflammation in asthma patients with or without symptoms in order to help ensure a more accurate diagnosis, predict and measure response to anti-inflammatory medication and help clinicians to make more informed treatment decisions. In treatment follow-up, eNO measurements can help detect poor anti-inflammatory medication adherence and delivery problems, as well as allergen exposure.