Accelerate Diagnostics, Inc. announced the signing of a collaboration and quality agreement with Bruker Corporation. This agreement enables both companies to validate the use of Accelerate Diagnostics' Arc system, an innovative, automated positive blood culture sample preparation platform, with Bruker's MALDI Biotyper sirius instruments and Sepsityper software for subsequent registration in both the US and EMEA markets. The Arc system enables on-demand processing of samples without the need for an overnight culture incorporation, reducing the wait time for identification results.

Labs will be able to leverage the breadth of their Bruker MALDI-Biotyper identification library in combination with rapid phenotypic antibiotic susceptibility results using the Accelerate Pheno system, as well as with the Accelerate WAVE system which is currently under development and planned for future release. The Arc? system is designed to compete with molecular positive blood culture identification solutions.

Namely, utilization of Bruker's Biotyper system, in conjunction with the Arc? system, offers the potential to reduce the likelihood of cross reactivity and false positive results that come with rapid molecular tests. In addition, the platform economics are more favorable with the Arc??

system as compared to on-market molecular platforms, especially when laboratories consider that approximately 30% of results are blood culture contaminants resulting in wasted expense. Finally, clinical laboratories are under pressure to run FDA cleared devices with increased legislation and enforcement of laboratory developed tests. As such, Accelerate has already initiated a clinical trial with intent to submit to the FDA over the coming months with the goal of seamless laboratory adoption.

In addition to its Arc? system, the Accelerate Pheno® system and Accelerate PhenoTest® BC kit combine several technologies aimed at reducing the time clinicians must wait to determine the most optimal antibiotic therapy for deadly infections. The FDA cleared Pheno® system and kit fully automate the sample preparation steps to report phenotypic antibiotic susceptibility results in approximately 7 hours direct from positive blood cultures.

Recent external studies indicate the solution offers results 1-2 days faster than existing methods, enabling clinicians to optimize antibiotic selection and dosage specific to the individual patient days earlier.