Iceni Diagnostics
Befriending Sugars to Identify Infections

For long, carbohydrates were largely ignored by the mainstream pharmaceutical companies, citing them as too difficult to work with, while the public at large just viewed them as a bad influence on health. However, emerging solutions in biotechnology and molecular chemistry are gradually changing this accepted norm, leading to the growing adoption of carbohydrates as an alternative to proteins and DNA for diagnostic purposes. Pioneering this movement to find virtue in carbohydrate-based diagnostic methods for infectious diseases and chronic disorders is Iceni Diagnostics, through its breakthrough technology and deep industry knowledge. “Sugar is actually good for you, in the right context,” begins Professor Rob Field, co-founder and CEO of Iceni Diagnostics. Incepted in 2014 as a joint spinout from the University of East Anglia and the John Innes Centre at Norwich Research Park’s Innovation Centre, Iceni Diagnostics strikes an innovation chord in point-of-care diagnostics through its bespoke diagnostic solutions for infectious diseases.

Iceni Diagnostics’ in-house programmes leverage collaborative glycoscience R&D, nanoparticle technology, and bioconjugation chemistry to develop novel point-of-care diagnostics for the detection of influenza infection in humans, animals or birds. Unlike its competitors, the company’s unique, carbohydrate-based technology can be used for point-of-care testing to detect and distinguish between different strains of pathogen, and to help devise effective vaccines even against infectious diseases that are antibiotic-resistant. “More than 90 per cent of all pathogen infections use carbohydrate recognition to bind with targets in humans or animal bodies. This presents a unique opportunity to develop diagnostics and vaccines for infectious diseases, rather than just re-running the antibiotic resistance race with bacteria,” explains Field.

The company combines over 80 years of expertise in carbohydrate and analytical chemistry to push the line in this underexplored domain for improving both human and animal health.

At its core, Iceni Diagnostics utilises the subtleties of the polar and hydrophobic chemical nature of carbohydrates to drive its initial commercial products for the rapid detection of disease-causing microorganisms. Iceni Diagnostic’s extensive know-how in the arena enables it to detect the interactions of sugars with key receptors, empowering clinicians with an accurate carbohydrate-based diagnostics solution. Working closely with government and research organisations in the UK, Iceni Diagnostics offers an array of cheap and fast ‘low technology’ solutions that addresses the infectious disease diagnosis needs of medics and vets. “Our diagnostic solutions offer a multidimensional scenario to detect different kinds of infections in just a single analysis,” adds Field.

A use case that displays Iceni Diagnostics’ domain expertise is its dipstick test for equine influenza detection in horses that requires no instruments or specialised training, and can be used similar to a pregnancy detection kit. Anyone can do this test by dipping the stick in a tiny sample and identify infection by looking at the line on the disposable device, providing a rapid non-invasive test for flu. The sensor on this device uses sugars labelled with inexpensive gold nanoparticles that trigger a ‘photophysics’ reaction to change the sample colour upon virus detection.

Iceni Diagnostics is at the beta testing phase of its influenza diagnostics devices and aims to launch them into the market soon. Currently focused in the influenza arena, Iceni Diagnostics plans to expand its diagnostic solutions to other strains of pathogen infections including norovirus, salmonella, or campylobacter and rollout vaccine development for various antibiotic-resistant infections in the near future. In parallel, the company has recently received funding from the UK and the US Governments for a program to develop diagnostic devices and vaccines, addressing the detection and treatment of Q fever—a challenging issue for farmed animals and a risk factor for military personnel.

Beyond infectious diseases, the bespoke solutions from Iceni Diagnostics’ carbohydrates platform hone a unique capability for targeted vaccination where changes in the sugar content or sugar patterns on cells are associated with different types of chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPDs) and cancer, for instances. The breakthrough technology from the company has attracted numerous recognitions and awards over recent years, including the prestigious Longitude Prize Discovery Award and South Norfolk Business Award 2019 for excellence in life sciences.