Overseas success for biotech firms
TWO Manchester biotech companies have reported significant developments overseas.
Premaitha Health, the developer of the CE-market non-invasive prenatal screening test IONA for Downes Syndrome and other genetic disorders, has signed two further distribution deals to make it available in the Middle East.
Premaitha’s new customers are establishing three strategically located laboratories in the Middle East to act as regional hubs offering non-invasive prenatal testing to women using the IONA test. The laboratories are expected to be operational during the second quarter of this year.
Premaitha’s IONA test was launched in 2015. Unlike traditional prenatal screening methods, the IONA test is performed only on the mother’s blood sample, which contains traces of fetal DNA, and then analysed using next generation DNA sequencing technology.
Due to its high level of accuracy, the IONA test can significantly reduce the number of women subjected to unnecessary stressful and invasive follow up diagnostic procedures which are both costly and resource intensive.
“With an estimated 1.5 million births a year in the catchment areas which these three new laboratory hubs can address, these agreements will make the IONA test available to a substantial number of women in the Middle East,” said Dr Stephen Little, CEO.
“The IONA test was designed to enable laboratories like these around the world to offer an approved, safe, fast, accurate and complete system in-house for non-invasive prenatal testing. We are delighted to expand our footprint into the Middle East.”
Meanwhile, molecular diagnostics firm Epistom Holdings has been awarded $2.9m of funding from the US Department of Defense for the next stage of its programme to develop a hand held Genedrive test for biohazard identification.
In August 2015, Epistem announced the first $2.4m phase of the $7.8m programme with the US Department of Defense for the development and manufacture of Genedrive® as a biohazard identification system. The second phase announced today was triggered by successful progress to date and is expected to be largely undertaken during the financial year 2016/17.
Epistem chief executive David Budd, CEO of Epistem, said: “Today’s announcement is a recognition of our team’s expertise in developing new assays and marks a further important validation of Genedrive’s potential as a highly versatile molecular diagnostic system which can be used outside a central lab setting.
“The US Department of Defense programme funding increases our overall development capability and our ability to develop Genedrive to realise its full potential.”
