NASHVILLE, Tenn., June 28, 2023 (Newswire.com) - Infusense Corporation, a Nashville-based medical device company, has been granted a $1 million Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). The funding will drive the development and FDA approval of HemaSense™, a platform designed to rapidly detect and measure fentanyl levels in opioid overdose patients within minutes using just a single drop of blood. Dr. Marcin Guzinski, Director of Engineering at Infusense, will lead the two-year project.
This Phase II grant follows Infusense's prior award of a $253,000 NSF SBIR Phase I grant, which demonstrated the potential of their technology for novel point-of-care drug toxicity applications.
According to recent federal data, opioid drug overdose deaths in the United States reached a record high of 109,680 in 2022. Over two-thirds of these deaths involved synthetic opioids, including fentanyl. Currently, assessing real-time fentanyl concentration requires sending a venous blood draw to a specialized lab, a time-consuming process that can take hours.
"If brought to market, HemaSense will provide emergency physicians with an innovative tool to rapidly determine fentanyl presence and concentration, improving overdose outcomes and informing acute management in the ER setting," said Eric Kriegstein, CEO of Infusense Corp. "Support from the NSF will accelerate the transition of our platform from the lab to FDA-approval and commercialization."
About Infusense Corp.
Infusense is an early-stage biomedical device company focused on building a rapid, point-of-care diagnostic platform for the detection and quantification of lipophilic drugs using electrochemistry. For more information, please visit www.infusense.com.
About the National Science Foundation (NSF)
The National Science Foundation (NSF) powers America's Seed Fund, providing $200 million in annual awards to startups and small businesses. The fund transforms scientific discoveries into products and services with commercial and societal impact. To learn more about the NSF SBIR/STTR program, visit seedfund.nsf.gov.
Editor's Note: Research reported in this publication is being supported by the National Science Foundation under Award Number 2309437. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Science Foundation.
Contact Information:Patricia Shaw
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Original Source: Infusense Awarded $1 Million NSF SBIR Grant to Advance Rapid Fentanyl Toxicity Test
