Massachusetts Life Sciences Center has granted $500,000 as Small Business Matching Grant (SBMG) to Immunetics to commercialize BacTx test for detecting bacterial contamination in platelets.
Immunetics has concluded clinical trials for BacTx and plans to submit an application for approval to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Immunetics was one of four life sciences firms named by the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center’s Board of Directors (the Center) to share in $2m in new SBMGs.
Immunetics received two SBIR Phase II grants of $4m from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), an agency of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which supports the research and development of the test.
Massachusetts Life Sciences Center president and CEO Susan Windham-Bannister said federal SBIR/STTR grants provide Massachusetts companies with funds for their research and development; their SBMG program then provides the funds that companies need to bridge to commercialization.
Immunetics president and scientific director Andrew Levin said he is continuing support by the Commonwealth and the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center of their mission to introduce diagnosis of infectious diseases, as they grow their company in South Boston and become a part of and employer in Massachusetts Life Sciences community.
With FDA approval, the BacTx test will be marketed to blood centers and hospitals throughout the US and around the world.