On February 2, 2022 Sorrento Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: SRNE, "Sorrento") reported that it has completed the acquisition of Virex Health, Inc., a Boston, MA based company ("Virex"), spun out of the labs of Professors Mark Grinstaff and Scott Schaus at BU, on February 1, 2022 (Press release, Sorrento Therapeutics, FEB 1, 2022, View Source [SID1234607603]). The proprietary Virex Technology utilizes enzymatic and electrochemical amplification to detect picogram level biological analytes, such as SARS-CoV-2 and its variants, Flu A/B, as well as markers for liver cancer, inflammation and hormone monitoring.
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"One of the most exciting things about this Virex platform is the potential to finally provide an extremely sensitive and affordable detection test which is simple enough to use at home. Similar to a glucose meter, the amplified electrochemistry signal is converted to an electrical current and read in a reusable glucometer," said Dr. Scott Schaus, Co-Founder and Professor of Chemistry at BU. "Today there are glucose meters in nearly 1 in 10 households in the world. We know the chemistry is broadly adaptable and the supply chain highly scalable."
The Virex and Sorrento teams have been working together to define the first test with which to pursue commercialization. Key personnel, including Drs. Mark Grinstaff and Scott Schaus and Virex scientists, will assist with further development and commercialization.
"The current sensitivity for at-home testing is just too low, and the price per test is still too high for daily testing. With capabilities both in therapeutics and in diagnostics, Sorrento is an ideal company to take this next-generation Virex platform to the world across a wide range of analytes, including viruses, nucleic acids, proteins, hormones and other biomarkers," said Dr. Grinstaff, Co-Founder and a Distinguished Professor of Translational Research. Dr. Grinstaff is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Chemistry, Materials Sciences, Engineering and Medicine at BU. Dr. Grinstaff is an inventor of Abraxane and Adherus Surgical Sealants, and he has over 200 patents and patent applications to his name. "Virex seeks to leverage Sorrento’s extensive expertise in producing highly selective and specific monoclonal antibodies for use in at-home diagnostic tests, including tests capable of detecting SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid proteins and whole viruses."
"Sorrento has remarkable vision for impacting diagnostics and other sectors of healthcare," said Virex co-founder Keith Hearon, a former postdoctoral fellow in Professor Robert Langer’s Group at MIT. "Sorrento’s acquisition of Virex is particularly strategic because of Sorrento’s robust antibody library, which is highly complementary to Virex’s enzymatic amplification diagnostic assay platform. The puzzle pieces fit very nicely together."
"As Keith’s former postdoctoral advisor at MIT, I’ve continued to follow his career and I’m very proud of what a terrific entrepreneur he has become. He did a great job with his vision for Virex and found a wonderful home for it with Sorrento under the outstanding leadership of Henry Ji," said Professor Langer, David H. Koch Institute Professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
"We at Sorrento are amazed by the unmatched sensitivity of the Virex tests for detecting the virus that causes COVID-19 and are excited to mass produce and commercialize the rapid at-home tests for daily COVID-19 testing and frequent early cancer detection," said Dr. Henry Ji, Chairman and CEO of Sorrento.
Virex received funding support in 2021 from the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center under its Accelerating Coronavirus Testing Solutions program.