Project description DEENESFRITPL A point-of-care test detects antibiotic resistance in tuberculosis Drug resistance poses a serious medical challenge in the treatment of many infectious diseases including tuberculosis, which is responsible for more than 1.5 million deaths every year. Prescription of ineffective antibiotics exacerbates the situation, and patients must undergo screening to identify drug-resistant bacteria species. The scope of the EU-funded mfloDx project is to develop an easy-to-use tuberculosis diagnostic test that can provide results on antibiotic resistance in less than 3 hours. The test can be performed at the point of care with minimal training and instrumentation. Its high specificity and sensitivity, alongside its cost-effectiveness, make it ideal for implementation in developing countries. Show the project objective Hide the project objective Objective Tuberculosis (TB) kills more people than any other pathogen-borne illness; yearly, 10M people fall ill and 1.6M die. TB also contributes to a growing existential crisis: the spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria. Multi-drug-resistant TB is flourishing due to incomplete diagnoses and widespread prescription of ineffective antibiotics. Commercial diagnostics often require equipment in the €12-70K range and are either very slow or incomplete. As a result, less than one-third of new TB patients undergo strain testing to determine whether antibiotic resistance is present. mfloDx is a low-cost, DNA-based TB diagnostic, similar to home-pregnancy tests. In <3 h, our test identifies nearly 100% of drug resistant TB strains with 92-97% accuracy, directly from sputum samples and with a minimum of lab equipment or training. Clinical validation is ongoing and we are preparing for in vitro diagnostic (IVD) certification for an estimated launch in late 2022. The low cost, accessibility, and stability of mfloDx tests will enable uptake in developing countries, which are the source of much antibiotic-resistant infection. EMPE‘s team are experts in TB research, business development, and diagnostic tools for infectious disease. mfloDx grew from a molecular innovation called the Padlock probe, developed by our co-founder, Mats Nilsson. EMPE CEO Pavan Asalapuram combined this technology with a lateral flow biosensor, as a fast and accurate kit to identify antibiotic resistance. EMPE has raised ~€2M in seed capital and started clinical validations with partners in Spain and India. Thus far, our facility at Karolinska Institute Science Park produces test kits for research use only (RUO). EIC funding would accelerate clinical validation of our kits toward in vitro diagnostic certification and enable the implementation of large-scale production. This project will enable us to launch our top-of-the-line product and reach a worldwide €3.5B TB diagnostics market with WHO backing. Fields of science engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringsensorsbiosensorsmedical and health scienceshealth sciencesinfectious diseasesmedical and health sciencesclinical medicinepneumologytuberculosismedical and health sciencesbasic medicinepharmacology and pharmacypharmaceutical drugsantibioticsmedical and health sciencesbasic medicinepharmacology and pharmacydrug resistanceantibiotic resistance Programme(s) H2020-EU.2.3. - INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Innovation In SMEs Main Programme H2020-EU.3. - PRIORITY 'Societal challenges H2020-EU.2.1. - INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Leadership in enabling and industrial technologies Topic(s) EIC-SMEInst-2018-2020 - SME instrument Call for proposal H2020-EIC-SMEInst-2018-2020 See other projects for this call Sub call H2020-EIC-SMEInst-2018-2020-3 Funding Scheme SME-2b - SME Instrument (grant only and blended finance) Coordinator EMPE DIAGNOSTICS AB Net EU contribution € 2 485 525,00 Address Karolinska istitute science park nobels vag 16 171 65 Stockholm Sweden See on map SME The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed. Yes Region Östra Sverige Stockholm Stockholms län Activity type Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments) Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Other funding € 1 065 225,00
