Personalised COVID-19 breath test prototype developed

Integumen has unveiled a new personalised COVID-19 breath test, Microtox BT, and its complementary Digital Health Pass platform. 

This comes alongside the progress for its COVID-19 wastewater detection system, in collaboration with Modern Water, Avacta and Aptamer.

Integumen is working with a consortium of companies collaborating to find solutions in the fight against COVID-19 pandemic. The consortium also includes a global provider of innovative technology and services for the data era.

Integumen recognised that in collaboration with Modern Water, Avacta and Aptamer Group, its real-time detection and alert system could be adapted to detect the level of infection of Coronavirus in a breath sample. Adapting the wastewater test, Microtox PD, the company has designed, built and tested a prototype, Microtox BT, which can analyse the breath and detect the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 in real-time for those with a high viral load.

Microtox BT has undergone internal testing and will now transition to the University of Aberdeen containment level 3 laboratory, to undergo tests directly on the virus followed by a joint trial of up to 5,000 participants in parallel with third parties using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (“rtPCR”) and antigen tests. Results are anticipated before the end of the year and Microtox BT is expected to be a Class 1 medical device.

The Company believes Microtox BT has the potential to enable instant real-time testing of people within the community. This could be capable of  providing daily triaging of everyone who may or may not demonstrate levels of infection.  To “open the economy”, Integumen has incorporated a 24-hour Digital Health Pass that indicates if the person tests positive or negative for infection. Matched with blockchain secure date and time stamp of the test, the company believes Microtox BT and the Digital Health Pass using “one second” QR Code scanners could potentially contribute to enabling the economy to re-open with personalised go/no go entry into venues such as work, events, social locations, public transport and airports.  

Integumen has completed integration of an Affimer/Aptamer-based real-time SARS-COV-2 detector and alert system into Modern Water’s  Microtox water contamination system, now called Microtox PD, for the detection of the Coronavirus in wastewater. Microtox PD has now successfully completed initial spike protein testing and validation of SARS-CoV-2 in filtered wastewater and will be transitioned to the University of Aberdeen for full beta testing of the system using real SARS-CoV-2 virus samples in its containment level 3 laboratory.

Integumen has integrated its Rinocloud AI technology to enable continuous learning and improvements as the system gains data in commercial use.  Microtox PD, for continuous detection of SARS-CoV-2 in sewage, is anticipated for launch in early 2021 and will be distributed through Modern Water’s global footprint of over 3,000 installations.

Integumen has signed Memorandum of Understanding (“MoU”) for agreements to be concluded with Avacta (on 13 July 2020) and Aptamer (on 22 June 2020)  for the supply of commercial scale quantities of SARS-CoV-2 binding agents. These royalty-bearing, non-assignable, sub-licensable, revocable, worldwide licence agreements are for the use of the respective Affimers from Avacta and Aptamers from Aptamer Group for next-generation sensors providing identification of localised COVID-19 hotspots in wastewater and personalised real-time Breath Test and Digital Health Pass devices.