Fluxion Biosciences,
a leading developer of microfluidic systems for functional cell analysis, today
announced that it has received a $1.8 million NIH grant for the development
of a high-throughput screening platform for anti-microbial drug discovery. The
Phase II grant will enable the company to further develop its innovative microfluidic
platform for cellular research and drug discovery.
The Phase II project will build on the successful proof-of-concept results
from the Phase I grant, which identified a high-throughput screening approach
for anti-microbial drugs. Antibiotics such as penicillin, tetracycline, and
amoxicillin have been around for decades. Over time, certain microbes have developed
resistance to these treatments. Drug-resistant infections cause 14,000 deaths
in America each year and add over $4 billion in cost to the healthcare system.
The latest grant focuses on the integration of the drug screening approach developed
during the Phase I research into a fully automated platform. The system, based
on high-throughput functional screening on live bacteria or cells, is expected
to have additional application in the development of drugs for treatment of
cardiovascular and immune disorders.
"We are pleased to receive this Phase II NIH grant for the continued development
of this exciting screening platform," said Cristian Ionescu-Zanetti, Ph.D.,
chief technology officer. "The results of our Phase I project showed significant
gains over conventional drug screening approaches. This platform promises to
be a powerful tool for developing the next generation of drug therapies."
Fluxion Biosciences provides cellular analysis tools for use in critical life
science research and drug discovery applications. Fluxion’s proprietary
microfluidic platform enables precise functional analysis of individual cells
in a multiplexed format. Fluxion’s systems meet the rigorous demands of
life science and drug discovery scientists by providing an intuitive, easy-to-use
operating system for single-cell biology.