PhageTech is a developmental stage company applying an innovative approach for detecting disease markers in body fluids including urine and blood. Compared to current antibody-based assays, PhageTech’s approach could offer improved sensitivity and performance. PhageTech’s proprietary technology has the potential to be more stable and less expensive than current testing methods. It consists of engineered bacteriophages bonded to a proprietary material developed and patented by the University of California, Irvine, and licensed to PhageTech Inc.
PhageTech’s bioconducting materials are antibody-free, reagent-free, label-free and nearly instantaneous. The result is a biologically active and electrically passive multi-channel biosensor, creating a quantifiable signal when in contact with specific disease biomarkers. It is capable of performing multiple simultaneous assays without complex sample processing.
A fluid-in and data-out model eliminates the need for any special training, lab equipment, or capital equipment. Each biosensor can be read by a self-powered handheld reader, with patient results instantly displayed using a smartphone app and securely transported to the cloud. Protein sensing with the PhageTech platform has been demonstrated with PSMA (Prostate-specific membrane antigen) and HSA (Human Serum Albumin). These targets could impact the diagnosis of prostate cancer and kidney disease, respectively.