PRESS RELEASES   Made in Oklahoma : JK Autoimmunity Inc. 12/18/2007 *Address: 755 Research Parkway, Suite 530. *Web Address: www.jkautoimmunity.com. *Employees: Six. *Key personnel: Ken Kaufman, co-founder and president; Beth Cobb, chief operating officer; Jeff Kilpatrick, chief of informatics; David Hutchings, chief of technical services; Dr. John Harley M.D., Ph.D., co-founder and corporate secretary. *Founded: 1999. *Key service: Genome-wide genotyping of DNA. *Background: JK Autoimmunity is a spin-off company of the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation. It was founded by Dr. John Harley, head of OMRF's Arthritis and Immunology Research Program, and fellow OMRF scientists Ken Kaufman Ph.D. and Dr. Judith James M.D., Ph.D. The company performs genomewide genotyping of DNA, a service that it markets to academic scientists and pharmaceutical companies. Genomewide genotyping is the process of testing for genetic mutations throughout the entire human genome. OMRF researchers developed a genomewide genotyping approach that reduces the cost of this service by more than 75 percent over traditional methods. This approach was developed by Jeff Kilpatrick, Ken Kaufman, David Hutchings, Beth Cobb, and John Harley. Marketing is the biggest obstacle JK Autoimmunity faces in expanding its presence in the genotyping segment of the medical research industry, Harley said. But the company is the rare startup that has positive cash flow, he said. "A major investment would catapult our methods to the dominant approach in human genetics," Harley said. "In the meantime, we will grow patiently and within the confines of the cash flow generated to support the business." JK Autoimmunity also must adapt its services to a changing technical base as the underlying genotyping platform continues to change, Harley said. "JK already has found many fascinating - and potentially important - genetic correlations," he said. "For instance, we have found genes that correlate with blue eyes, with pulmonary disease in cystic fibrosis and with asthma in children. "From a therapeutic standpoint, some of the interesting genetic correlations we've made could be important for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, pulmonary fibrosis and inflammatory arthritis in children." Business Writer Jim Stafford