“I am pleased to join NGD’s Scientific Advisory Board just as the field is nearing the transformative moment when pathogen sequence will start to become utilized for making decisions about patient care.”
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (PRWEB)
September 22, 2022
Next Gen Diagnostics announces that Vanderbilt Professor Romney M. Humphries has joined its Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Humphries is a national leader in antibiotic susceptibility determination, its regulatory approval and clinical application, is the section director of clinical microbiology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and was a Scientific Advisory Board member of Specific Diagnostics before its sale to bioMerieux in May 2022. Dr. Humphries’ work correlating the genomic basis of resistance to in vitro susceptibility results along with her deep experience in regulatory clearance requirements will provide invaluable insight as NGD systematically brings whole genome sequence (WGS)-based diagnostics to patient care under the FDA regulatory framework.
“I am pleased to join NGD’s Scientific Advisory Board just as the field is nearing the transformative moment when pathogen sequence will start to become utilized for making decisions about patient care,” said Dr. Humphries. “We already have drug-species combinations where sequence is not only as but more accurate than the gold standard in vitro tests. Certainly for these cases this prompts all stakeholders to consider a shift to sequence-based decision making for bacterial infection.”
NGD has combined world-class fully automated bioinformatics, validated in published clinical studies, with a revolutionary microfluidic sample preparation system to offer a low cost, overnight complete pathogen WGS service. NGD’s exclusive microfluidic sample preparation system reduces reagent volumes >10-fold, is highly compact and automated, enabling 48 bacterial samples to be simultaneously processed in an instrument the size of a desktop computer using a disposable the size of a single plate.
“I am gratified that Romney will join NGD’s distinguished Scientific Advisory Board,” said Dr. Paul A. Rhodes, CEO. “She has extraordinarily deep practical knowledge of antibiotic susceptibility testing, its regulatory consideration, and application in the clinic, and was a key SAB member of my prior company, Specific Diagnostics. NGD is bringing an affordable, overnight, automated WGS service to clinical microbiology, for transmission detection and, with regulatory clearance, patient diagnostics. I look forward to working again with Romney to have her unique insights and practical experience benefit this mission.”
About Next Gen Diagnostics
NGD, founded with Sanger Institute group leaders, has built and validated the world-leading automation of pathogen bioinformatics necessary to enable high throughput low cost clinical use of WGS. In addition, NGD holds the exclusive rights to a revolutionary microfluidic system for all clinical and commercial applications of pathogen WGS. NGD offers high volume turn-key sequencing services to enable detection of transmission in hospitals, and is working with leading collaborators in the US, Europe and Israel to be the first to bring WGS-based regulated diagnostics to patient care. NGD is based in the US, with an office in Cambridge, UK and a subsidiary in Israel. For press inquiries, please contact: press@nextgen-dx.com
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