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Presymptom Health

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Introduction

As the UK healthcare system struggles to keep pace with the Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) crisis (identified by the World Health Organisation as one of the top 10 global public health threats), Presymptom Health’s AI-driven AMR tests could revolutionise its detection, diagnosis and treatment, saving countless lives.

This UK spin out emerged from UK Defence Laboratories in 2019, having been identified by Ploughshare — a company that finds new and inspiring uses for government inventions — as an innovation which could have potential societal impact.

Backed by UKI2S and other investors in both the public and private sectors, Presymptom’s technology is currently undergoing clinical trials at nine NHS hospitals, as well as two hospitals in the Netherlands. Presymptom is using this support to accelerate product development, support clinical trial activity and allow the company to secure UKCA accreditation and roll-out the technology by mid-2025.

The Science

Presymptom’s InfectiClearTM, the company’s first product provides early and reliable information about true infection status in patients with non-specific inflammatory symptoms suggestive of potential infection or sepsis, helping doctors to make better treatment decisions, faster. It has the potential to accurately predict infection status up to 3 days before conventional clinical diagnosis is possible.

The technology focuses on RNA-based host response analytics, which identifies the patient’s response to an infectious agent (pathogen), rather than detecting the pathogen itself, as with other tests currently in the market. By providing a highly sensitive, pathogen-agnostic, early signal of active infection or sepsis, it overcomes the limitations associated with these traditional pathogen-centric approaches, including long time-to-result windows, low accuracy and uncertain diagnoses which can lead to inappropriate care pathways and treatment plans. These tests can be run on NHS PCR platforms, which were widely deployed during the COVID pandemic and are now often under-utilised.

UKI2S Impact

£154,384

initial UKI2S investment in 2021

£3.2 million

total capital raised to date (equity and grants)

£654,384

total UKI2S investment

Dr Iain Miller, CEO of Presymptom Health said:

“We’re confident that our first product can play a big part in tackling Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR). By understanding the presence, or absence, of infection as early as possible, doctors can be more confident in their diagnosis and avoid unnecessarily prescribing antibiotics — something that is a growing concern in the NHS and globally. This funding will help us enter the market by 2025 and, ultimately, save lives sooner. We will initially roll-out in the UK, but have plans for the US and beyond in the following years.”

As early-stage investors, we have a huge role to play in backing technologies which can truly improve our lives.

Presymptom is a great example of a ‘lab to life’ journey that we don’t often see, and UKI2S is proud to be lead investor in a company whose impact on humanity is immediately obvious. As further testament to its game-changing offering, Presymptom was one of only seven other companies invited to participate in the Innovative Devices Access Pathway (IDAP) pilot, a new MHRA/NICE pathway designed to ensure that technology is helping UK patients as quickly as possible.

Presymptom Health’s innovative technology has the potential to radically transform the clinical diagnosis process and prevent unnecessary deaths. With an initial roll-out in the UK planned for 2025, we’re excited to support the company as it strives to break into the global infectious disease diagnostics market — estimated to be worth $31.5 billion by 2028.

Presymptom’s offering is a fantastic way to demonstrate how tech can be used for good — particularly important at a time when AI is under huge scrutiny. As the first investors in this tech, we’re happy to stand alongside Ploughshare, MedtechToMarket, Innovate UK, The National Institute for Health and Care Research and the Ministry of Defence helping to bring Presymptom’s first product InfectiClearTM to market, and in turn, the world.

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