subject: Accelr8 Technology Corp. $13M (MarketCap) Announces Industry Agreement for Technology Evaluation Project [print this page] Accelr8 Technology CorpAccelr8 Technology Corp. $13M (MarketCap) Announces Industry Agreement for Technology Evaluation Project
Thousands of people die each year from hospital acquired infections (HAI) caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Physicians could treat most infections successfully even those caused by "superbugs" if they could identify antibiotic resistance within a few hours of symptom onset. But bacterial culture usually takes one to three days far too late to guide antibiotic therapy. Accelr8 Technology Corporation, a developer of innovate materials and instrumentation for advanced application in medical instrumentation, basic research, drug discovery, and bio-detection, has declared its mission to solve this problem. The company is developing a rapid analytical platform for detecting these infectious pathogens, known as the BACcelTM system. It aims to deliver bacterial identification and specific antibiotic susceptibility testing within 8 hours of specimen receipt, and this new system is capable of doing this by eliminating culturing.
Today, Accelr8 Technology Corp. (AMEX: AXK) is currently trading at $1.33, up $0.20 or 17.70%, upon its announcementof signinga technology evaluation agreement for its BaCcelTM rapid diagnostic system with a global diagnostics company. The short-term agreement includes an option for a license to complete product development, obtain regulatory approvals, and produce and market innovative diagnostic products based on the technology in the global markets. This project incorporates analysis of data being collected in pre-clinical and pilot studies already initiated at the Denver Health Medical Center and at the Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis. The agreement calls for an initial payment plus scheduled payments of additional funds until completion of data evaluation.
On May 24th, the company released results from its presentation at the annual General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) in San Diego. The study it presented addressed the 3 major species that cause about half of serious hospital-acquired infections. The 2-hour test, directly from specimen, achieved quantitative accuracy consisting of identification sensitivity and specificity ranging from 90% to 100% with different organisms. When reporting its results at the ASM, Accelr8 also addressed and confirmed the continuing lacking of any competing technology. Unlike other new technologies that only identify organisms, or only detect two or three resistance types, the BaCcelTM rapid diagnostic system detects all of the organisms and resistance types that most often cause therapy to fail. The complex materials in real specimens can powerfully interfere with direct, culture-free analysis, and Accelr8 Technology has overcome this critical hurdle.
Over the next 8 months, Accelr8 will advance tests to detect highly threatening new types of resistance that defeat standard laboratory tests. These tests will use sophisticated analyses that are also valuable for new drug development. The company's overall mission is to demonstrate with hard data the potential to uniquely address the antibiotic resistance crisis that confronts the healthcare system with, according to leading epidemiologists, unsustainable' demands'.
David Howson, Accelr8's president, commented on this new agreement. "We are very pleased to have a global industry leader evaluate our technology with the intent to commercialize it. This level of interest helps to validate our choice of markets for our breakthrough technology platform. The studies already started at our two collaborating institutions will integrate smoothly into the new plan. The funding is sufficient to achieve the project objectives."
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