Cambridge Nucleomics develops an ultra-fast one-hour sepsis test by directly detecting and identifying pathogen rRNAs without intermediate steps; the current gold standard test takes over a day. They developed nanopore-based RNA analysis technology 1000x faster than other sequencing methods. At scale, their point-of-care testing device will detect 80 bacteria and fungi from 10 ml of blood in just 1 hour in a fully automated fashion; at present, they have a laboratory-scale prototype, two patents and published proof-of-concept for bacterial rRNA and viral RNA detection. The spin-out from Ulrich Keyser’s group at the Cavendish Laboratory is currently focusing on fungal infections in cancer patients following chemotherapy and the immunosuppressed, as fast detection of fungi is challenging with existing methods and fungicides can cause dose-limiting side effects during treatment. Cambridge Nucleomics’ test will not only identify fungal cells in the blood to determine the optimal treatment but also monitor treatment efficacy in vivo in near real-time from blood samples taken during treatment. Cambridge Nucleomics is raising £1M to expand proof-of-concept to human samples, for which they are negotiating access to biobanks from UC Davis and Galeazzi Hospital in Milan. The technology has further applications across laboratory tools, RNA drugs and gene therapy.

In the UK 1 million people suffer from dementia or movement disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease. Many of these diseases look similar at an early stage but progress very differently. In the UK, 20% of cases are initially misdiagnosed leading to uncertainty for patients and their families and an increased burden on the NHS.

At Neurothread we are developing an early and accurate diagnostic test for Parkinson’s and related diseases. Our solution is a rapid blood test that can distinguish closely related diseases, and can identify these diseases before physical and cognitive symptoms appears. Early and accurate diagnosis provides certainty for patients, reduces hospitalisations, and delays care home admissions. Our solution therefore allows patients to get the certainty and disease management they need.

CMR Surgical is a global medical devices company dedicated to transforming surgery with Versius®, a next-generation surgical robot.
CMR is committed to working with surgeons, surgical teams and hospital partners, to provide an optimal tool to make robotic minimal access surgery universally accessible and affordable.
Paul Roberts is a business and technology leader with over 15 years’ research and product development experience. Paul is passionate about encouraging, motivating and leading excellent teams to deliver a great customer experience. Prior to founding CMR, Paul led and grew capability in complex medical device development at the Science Group Plc.