Accelr8 Technology to present results of culture-free, quantitative pathogen identification study at 110th ASM

Accelr8 Technology Corporation (NYSE Amex: AXK) today announced that it has received acceptance to present results for a study on 2-hour, culture-free, quantitative pathogen identification. The study was co-authored with principal investigators at the Denver Health Medical Center and the Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis. The presentation will take place at the 110th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology (ASM, www.asm.org) to be held from May 23-27 in San Diego. Tests performed directly from specimens accurately identified three target pathogens that are the most resistance–prone bacteria responsible for hospital-acquired infections (HAI).

“We might think of hVISA as MRSA 2.0”

The company also announced the start of a study to confirm performance of a new rapid test. It detects a threatening form of resistance that can cause failure of the drug most commonly used to treat MRSA “superbug” infections. There is no standard test for this important new type of resistance, known as “hVISA.” It can now be identified only with special equipment and procedures that are not practical for standard hospital labs, and takes 3-5 days. Accelr8’s new test only takes 3-4 hours after the initial 2-hour quantitative identification step with the BACcel™ system.

“We might think of hVISA as MRSA 2.0,” said David Howson, Accelr8’s president. “Vancomycin, a drug from the 1950s, remains the drug of choice if the physician thinks that MRSA is causing an infection. Researchers discovered hVISA in patients who failed vancomycin therapy. The extent of its spread is unknown because it is so difficult to identify. With MRSA itself continuing to spread, it is essential to have a practical method to identify this potential next-generation MRSA.”

“MRSA causes as much as 20% of HAI mortality. Bacteria that are much more complex than MRSA cause the other 80%. Our first targets in addition to ‘Staph’ include Pseudomonas and Acinetobacter, which can cause HAI that is very difficult to manage. The study to be presented at ASM shows that the BACcel™ system can accurately count and identify these dangerous pathogens in a single two-hour culture-free test. This performance has never been approached by any other technology. It demonstrates the ability to detect multiple types of bacteria that are most likely to cause therapy to fail, and do it quickly enough to help improve the choice of initial therapy,” Howson continued.

“Our antibiotic resistance tests follow this two-hour count and identification to then determine whether broad resistance exists with any of the identified pathogens. We have demonstrated the unique ability to test for multiple major resistance types at once, such as MRSA and hVISA in Staphs, and ESBL and KPC now making the news about enteric bacteria. Our resistance tests typically add two to four hours, so the physician can receive complete results before leaving for the day. In conjunction with test development, our study at Denver Health continues to build its enrollment of ICU patients. We therefore expect 2010 to show very significant advances toward making the case for rapid diagnostics in managing critically ill patients who contract HAI,” Howson concluded.

Source Accelr8 Technology Corporation