Clemedi AG concludes license agreement for detecting latent tuberculosis
New diagnostic tool aims to improve disease management
Latent tuberculosis is a presentation of tuberculosis where the patient does not show any symptoms and also cannot transmit the disease to others. However, in times where the immune system is suppressed or challenged, the disease can transition back to active tuberculosis. How this happens and whether it can be predicted is a field of active research. Due to this fact, latently infected patients are a reservoir of disease and need to be considered in order to eradicate tuberculosis, a goal of the international community.
Currently all patients undergoing immune-suppressive therapy, such as before organ transplant or due to chemotherapy are required to be screened for latent tuberculosis. This is typically done with tests interrogating the immune memory for any contact with tuberculosis. These tests are often false-positive in patients vaccinated against tuberculosis or with long-past TB infection. These tests also cannot be used to confirm success of the eradication therapy following a positive finding.
At Clemedi we believe that the recent discovery that M. tuberculosis DNA can be recovered from blood in patients with latent tuberculosis will help improve the management of this disease. It provides tangible evidence of an infection and allows to determine potential drug resistance to better inform therapy. Lastly it allows to confirm that the diseases has been cleared by therapy. We are excited to bring this discovery to market and strengthen our portfolio for tuberculosis.
Dr. Sebastian Dümcke
CEO and founder of Clemedi
We are pleased, that Clemedi licensed the results of the cooperative work between the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin together with the Medical University of Vienna. This promises a greatly improved identification of patients infected with tuberculosis with the help of the AI-based analytical platform of Clemedi.
Dr. Dieter Link
Patent and licensing manager at Max Planck Innovation
Dr. Wolfgang Bauer and Prof. Georg Stingl, the inventors from the department of Dermatology of the MedUni Vienna emphasize that there will be further studies in the future that will enable rational design of host-directed tuberculosis therapies.
Dr. Claudia Ballaun
Technology transfer manager of MedUni Vienna
About Clemedi AG
Clemedi AG was founded in 2019 to develop sequencing-based tests for infectious diseases. It has developed a technology platform combining targeted sequencing and advanced bioinformatics to provide actionable results directly from a patient sample. The first assay on this platform targets active pulmonary tuberculosis, which will be followed by latent tuberculosis, sexually transmitted infections and hospital acquired infections.
About Medizinische Universität Wien
Medical University of Vienna is one of the most traditional medical education and research facilities in Europe. With almost 8,000 students, it is currently the largest medical training centre in the German-speaking countries. With 6,000 employees, 30 departments and two clinical institutes, 13 medical theory centres and numerous highly specialised laboratories, it is one of Europe's leading research establishments in the biomedical sector. MedUni Vienna also has a medical history museum, the Josephinum.
About Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology
Infections are among the most significant medical challenges. The relationships between microbes and their hosts are also essential drivers of evolution. At the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology, researchers from different disciplines search for answers to fundamental questions in infection biology. The scientists investigate how viruses, bacteria, parasites, fungi and worms cause diseases and how their hosts react to them. The research encompasses different levels: Atoms, molecules, cells, tissues and organisms as well as medical and social aspects.
About Max Planck Innovation
As the technology transfer organization of the Max Planck Society, Max Planck Innovation is the link between industry and basic research. With our interdisciplinary team, we advise and support scientists at the Max Planck Institutes in evaluating inventions, filing patents and starting businesses. We offer industry central access to the innovations of the Max Planck Institutes. We are therefore fulfilling an important task: The transfer of results from basic research into commercially and socially useful products.
More information under www.max-planck-innovation.com.
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