NEW YORK – The Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator (CARB-X) program said last week that it is awarding $3 million to diagnostics startup AstraDx to support the development of a rapid test for neonatal sepsis.
AstraDx is developing tests that use advanced digital imaging and signal processing for pathogen detection, pathogen identification, and antimicrobial susceptibility determination directly from a whole blood sample, with results within four hours of a blood draw. The company said in an announcement that reducing the time needed for pathogen identification and susceptibility testing from days to hours can help to ensure newborns are treated with effective antibiotics, and it noted that the risk of death from neonatal sepsis has been estimated to increase by 8 percent for each hour of treatment delay.
"Our system for diagnosing bloodstream infections for even the worst pathogens is designed to be easy to use and affordable for populations worldwide, including underserved populations," AstraDx CEO Fran White said in a statement.
The CARB-X program in March 2024 began accepting applications for funding to support the development of diagnostics for neonatal sepsis as well as proof-of-concept studies on the use of novel sample types for the diagnosis of lower respiratory tract infections, therapeutics for infections with Gram-negative bacteria, and tools to prevent invasive disease. The CARB-X program also announced last month that it was awarding $3.5 million to diagnostics firm Melio for the development of a blood test for the detection of pathogens that cause neonatal sepsis and markers of drug resistance, with a three-hour turnaround time.