Genedrive investment leads to losses at Epistem

MANCHESTER-based biotech company Epistem attributed an interim pre-tax loss of £536,000 during the six months to December 31, 2011 (2010: £102,000 profit) on increased investment in its Genedrive diagnostic device.

Sales increased by £100,000 to £3.1m during the period, which it described as “solid progress” given overall market conditions.

It also said that its recently-announced marketing agreement with Xceleris to sell the Genedrive in India, where it is already being used to diagnose tuberculosis quickly in remote areas, and a deal with GSK to use its biomarkers within its drug development programmes meant the company continues “to build and diversify our commercial strengths”.

Sales within its contract research division remained flat at £1.4m., while sales in within its biomarker business picked up considerably due to an earlier collaboration deal signed with Sanofi-Aventis. This helped to grow biomarker revenues to £1.3m, from £400,000 a year earlier.

The firm also raised cash via a share placing during the period, which meant that it now has a “strong” net cash position of £5.3m.

Chief executive officer Matthew Walls said: “Epistem remains focused on strengthening its revenues and advancing our globally leading technologies and scientific expertise to continue to deliver increased shareholder value.

“Where appropriate, we will consider the acquisition of new technology and businesses to complement our growth strategy.”