Diagnostics firm Owlstone Medical has entered a research collaboration agreement with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Devices and Radiological Health Office of Science and Engineering Laboratories (OSEL) to develop methods to accurately identify volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in breath.
Financial and other terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
Owlstone said in a statement that it intends to use the methods developed under the five-year agreement to support its work in identifying disease biomarkers and furthering the development of breath-based diagnostics, including the company's Breath Biopsy platform. The work will also assist in developing Owlstone's Breath Biopsy VOC Atlas database, a resource of identified and quantified VOCs in breath that is intended to support biomarker research.
"As evidenced by the high level of activity and investment being driven through the FDA, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and other groups such as the U.S. Department of Defense, the potential for breath-based diagnostics in high-need areas is becoming more widely realized," Billy Boyle, co-founder and CEO at Owlstone Medical, said.
Furthermore, the company noted that the research will contribute to its recently announced work with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which aims to develop remote-use breath-based diagnostics and identify breath biomarkers for tuberculosis and human immunodeficiency viruses.
