Fast disease testing just a pinprick away

Pictor technology puts fast disease testing just a pinprick away

A biotechnology company that started life in an Auckland garage has signed deals with partners in India and Europe, just four years after its founders began developing unique technology that can screen for a range of diseases from just a drop of blood.

Pictor Limited has created a simple and cost-effective system that can test for multiple medical conditions simultaneously, with results provided almost instantly through an easy-to-read printout. The ability to test for a range of conditions from a tiny sample, together with low set up costs, are key advantages over existing systems. The latter means the products can be used in laboratories with only basic medical infrastructure and limited access to sophisticated diagnostic equipment.

TechNZ, the business investment programme of the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology, has invested around $620,000 in Pictor since the start-up was established, helping it with research, development and intellectual property protection. Business Manager Rebecca Sanders says the commercial deals reflect the company’s smart science.

“They’ve combined known technologies in a unique way to be able to carry out a range of separate tests on one small sample of blood or fluid. They’ve also been commercially savvy by ensuring labs don’t need to buy expensive equipment to do the tests or read the results. The technology is accessible, useful and entry costs are low.”

Pictor co-founder Dr Anand Kumble says the company’s screening panel for rheumatoid arthritis is being piloted in India, where its client plans to offer testing at a network of sites around the country linked to a central laboratory in Bombay. Pictor’s system is also being evaluated for use in animal health, with a large veterinary diagnostic manufacturer in Europe commissioning the company to research whether its existing tests could be provided more cost effectively using Pictor’s technology.

The immunodiagnostic market is being driven by the need for earlier diagnosis of diseases, availability of cost-effective tests and technological advances. Infectious disease testing represents 17% of the US$6 billion immunoassay market. Diagnostics for autoimmune diseases including rheumatoid arthritis have annual worldwide sales of US$250 million.

The Indian market represents nearly ten percent of the world market and is growing rapidly due to an expanding middle class and an increase in health insurance schemes and privatised health care. The veterinary immunodiagnostic market is around US$440 million and growing in the areas of infectious disease testing of poultry and large farm animals such as pigs and cattle.

In addition to the screening panel developed for rheumatoid arthritis, Pictor has developed a panel to screen for three of the most prevalent viral infections – Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and HIV/AIDS.

Other potential applications include a generic wellness test where people could have an annual check up to screen for common diseases. “It’s also ideal to use with babies and young children because you need only a tiny amount of blood or fluid to test for a variety of diseases,” says Anand Kumble.

After gaining their doctorates in biochemistry at the University of Bombay, Anand and co-founder Sarita Kumble were working in the United States when they met Professor Dick Bellamy, recently retired Dean of Science at the University of Auckland, through a professional collaboration. The couple were looking for a lifestyle change and Professor Bellamy suggested they try New Zealand.

The Kumbles divided their time between New Zealand and the US for a decade, returning to Auckland in 2005 to form Pictor. Sarita started on proof of concept work in their garage, with initial patents filed by the end of the year.

Anand says the couple’s goal was to leverage their scientific knowledge and experience in biotechnology to find diagnostic solutions that would address major human health problems in developing countries.

“Diagnostics are crucial for identifying cause and presence of disease but most of the diagnostic companies use the Gillette model – they sell the equipment cheaply or give it away but then the purchaser has to spend a fortune buying their consumables for it to work.
It’s easier for medical groups in emerging economies to make the decision to buy our technology. We can also custom make screening panels to test for the diseases that are prevalent in their particular region.”

An early decision to use off-the-shelf reagents has helped Pictor get its technology platform to market quickly which was another of the company’s goals.

“Our strength is in developing good ideas, rather than manufacturing. As our technology develops further, we hope a bigger enterprise will step in and use its resources to take Pictor’s products to a bigger market, leaving us free to innovate again,” says Anand.

Pictor has been supported by capital from six private investors through three rounds of financing along with government investment through TechNZ and New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. Pictor’s staff numbers have grown from two to five and the company expects its first revenues later in 2009.

In addition to providing much needed funds for a start-up company, Anand says TechNZ has connected Pictor with outside experts and knowledge. “Meeting the reporting requirements has also been really beneficial as it keeps your focus strong and equates to a kind of business auditing that it is simply hard to get around to in a small business.”

ENDS