Director
of the Office of Antimicrobial Resistance at the CDC, Dr. Steve Solomon,
recently told Medical News Today that the overuse and misuse of antibiotics in
the last seven decades is accelerating the evolution of bacterial resistance.
Citing research which shows that as much as half the time antibiotics are
prescribed to treat microorganisms like bacteria, fungi and parasites
inappropriately, either due to the wrong dosage or simply because it is
unnecessary, Dr. Solomon made a strong case which was corroborated by the
conclusions of World Health Organization Coordinator of Antimicrobial
Resistance, Dr. Charles Penn, who cited incorrect usage of antibiotics as a
main driver of the increasing resistance being observed.
The
rise in recent years of CA-MRSA, or community-acquired methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus (as opposed to cases of MRSA originating from exposure in
a health care setting, or HA-MRSA, often referred to as a Healthcare-Acquired
Infection, or HIA), is of particular concern in light of new findings contained
in a report by Washington University School of Medicine’s Dr. Stephanie Fritz
and her colleagues in JAMA Pediatrics, which highlights that household surfaces
we commonly come into contact with on daily basis represent a key source of
dangerous reservoirs for “SA isolates that cause infections in children.” TV
remotes, as well as bathroom hand towels and bed linens, were the most frequent
sources cited, and a follow-up study is planned to make more accurate
determinations as to the specific dynamics of bacterial spread.
Enter
Zenosense, which is developing what is essentially an artificial nose capable
of continuously “smelling” the signature spectrum of airborne volatile organic
compounds (VOCs) emitted by MRSA/SA expression in a given patient. Using a
single, standard sensor and standard components, in combination with a
proprietary chip pre-loaded with unique processing software that allows one
sensor to do the work that would normally require anywhere from 8 to 32
sensors, ZENO is targeting two primary device formats, a low-cost
wearable/bed-mounted format using rechargeable batteries and a mains powered
fixed device format.
The
incredible capacity of this device design, using one sensor to virtualize the
typically necessary hardware of multiple sensors (and their related support
systems/power supplies required to scan the entire VOC spectrum), means ZENO is
estimating mass scale production capability in the range of under $100 per
device, with the potential to go as low as $50. The commercial potential of
such a cost-effective solution is huge consider the current state-of-the-art is
represented by devices like Cepheid’s (NASDAQ: CPHD) Xpert®, which still
requires about an hour to get a reading, or Roche’s (OTC: RHHBY) cobas® 4800
System-enabled MRSA/SA Test that, while more rapid and highly accurate, is
costly, and still takes considerable time to get a reading compared to
something like real-time detector.
ZENO’s
core IP is versatile as well, as evinced by their announcement in late July
2014 of the start on developing a lung cancer detection device with partner
Sgenia Group’s Zenon Biosystem subsidiary, in parallel with their MRSA/SA
sniffer, utilizing many of the same design and detection principles. This lung
cancer detection device would be paradigm shattering in a manner similar to the
advent of ZENO’s MRSA/SA detection device, especially considering that the high
fatality rate among lung cancer patients is due in large part to it typically
being caught in late-stage phases, when less than a quarter of cases can be
cured. The Zenosense lung cancer device could pave the way for a remarkable
turnaround lung cancer survivability, with a 70% cure rate if lung cancer can
be detected in Stage 1 representing a clear target for long-term commercial
prospects.
More
info on Zenosense is available at www.zenosense.net
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