Baltimore-based Astek Diagnostics is developing a point-of-care infection test system that can determine, within an hour, whether a patient has a urinary tract infection and which antibiotics are likely to be effective for treatment.
There were 8.1 million UTI-caused hospital visits in the U.S. last year, while 47 percent of those cases were treated with inappropriate antibiotics, according to the company. What’s more, 25 percent of sepsis cases were caused by UTIs. Overall, the cost of the mistreatment of UTIs across the U.S. was $1.6 billion.
While the company plans to go to market with its UTI system in 2025, its broader vision is to develop a test, through its Jiddu Platform, to confirm bacterial infections and assess antibiotic sensitivity across four sample types: urine, cerebrospinal fluid, effluent (wound exudate), and blood.
Astek CEO Mustafa Al-Adhami is a University of Maryland, Baltimore County alumnus, M.S. ‘15, Ph.D. ‘20, mechanical engineering.
The company licensed its testing technologies from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Al-Adhami is one of the inventors on the patent
Funding: Astek has raised $5.3 million in investment funding, with backers such as the Abell Foundation, Ayana Capital, TEDCO, Maryland Momentum Fund, and Y Combinator. The company has also garnered $2.3 million in non-dilutive grant funding from sources that include the NSF, FDA, and NIH.
Programs: I-Corps, MIPS, Maryland Momentum Fund
