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Today, Healthcare workers are increasingly exposed to antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) bacteria and are an important vector in transmission to patients. Hospitals-Acquired Infections (HAIs) are a continuous problem in health care and are treated using antimicrobials. However, this method often leads to recurrence and that, in turn the repeated use of antimicrobials—known as cycling. The treat-recur cycling causes AMR and, ultimately death. The rise of AMR is putting health care workers, patients, and their families at risk. The urgency of the situation is underlined in the fact that the presence of these multiple-drug resistant pathogens makes HAIs potentially deadly by drastically affecting the quality of life, or even be fatal. To this end, BioPlx is developing a paradigm-changing, clinically demonstrated product line capable of preventing the recurrence of infectious disease without antibiotics through the management of the micro biome. The company creates live bio-therapeutic products that are backed by clinical data showing exceptional magnitude and significance in both safety and efficacy based on solid science, a strong management team and a broad pool of intellectual property.

“Our mission at BioPlx is to prevent infectious disease through the management of the micro biome and make sure that people stay disease-free longer under more cost-effective regimens that are more sustainable,” states CEO of BioPlx, Ravi Starzl.

Our mission at BioPlx is to prevent infectious disease through the management of the microbiome and make sure that people stay disease-free longer under more cost-effective regimens that are more sustainable

BioPlx has made a groundbreaking clinical demonstration of efficacy and safety in their clinical trials back in their 2017 clinical trial by controlling recolonization following decolonization and preventing the recurrence of MRSA amongst medical professionals. Upon conclusion of the trial, BioPlx was able to exclude MRSA from the micro biome of all participants and prevent its recurrence for six months after only a single decolonization and recolonization application. BioPlx’s strategies involve targeting ‘bad bugs’ such as MRSA, decolonizing it from the patient’s microbiome, using appropriate treatments such as chlorhexidine, and introduce a protective BioPlx therapeutic to prevent relapse. “In our clinical trial, we showed that we could protect on a single application for up to six months, which is durability far beyond what the current clinical state of the art is,” further explains Starzl.

In animal studies, BioPlx’s protective biotherapeutic exhibited complete functionality of the unique safety characteristics without compromising its effectiveness at preventing the recurrence of MRSA. The company has even bio-engineered a “Kill Switch” safety mechanism to prevent their protective organisms from ever becoming accidental pathogens. Following an inoculation event, such as those that cause life-threatening bacteremia, the ‘Kill Switch’ causes instant self-destruction of the organism, ensuring the protective bacteria never causes the diseases it was designed to prevent. “Not only did we seek to address the issue but also to do it in a cost-efficient and safe method that could be deployed in a resource-constrained but the large-scale environment,” says Starzl.

Over the next few years, BioPlx is set to transform the face of the antimicrobial resistance problem globally by continuing to develop the intellectual property, clinical data, conduct a significant number of clinical trials. The company already has a broad pipeline of patent filings for the next 12 to 18 months, further bolstering its chances of disrupting the market. BioPlx plans to enter the animal health market where its technology can also be used to treat major issues, like bovine mastitis or atopic dermatitis, also without contributing to the development of AMR. The company is beginning to collaborate with regulatory officials and government agencies to ensure this paradigm-changing technology is part of the conversation and a key tool for combating infection and AMR.