Indiana start-up raises $444K for bacteria-detection technology

Advanced BioImaging Systems' BARDOT optical scanning technology

WEST LAFAYETTE, Indiana — Advanced BioImaging Systems LLC has received a $444,000 investment for technology licensed from Purdue University that uses a laser to detect bacteria in food products.

The company plans to use the private funding to further development of its BARDOT (Bacteria Rapid Detection using Optical Scattering Technology) instrument, according to Barry Rubin, an investor in the company.

The technology is used to detect pathogens in foods and could replace the need to have a biochemist on-site to conduct tests of samples at a meatpacking plant, for example, Rubin said.

The BARDOT device is currently in use at two U.S. Department of Agriculture laboratories. The company hopes to have about 10 on the market by the third quarter. It’s in discussions with an imaging-products distributor, Rubin said.

The device provides an advantage over bacteria-detection technology currently on the market because it is faster and does not destroy the test samples, according to Rubin. Along with the detection device, the company is developing a database of image samples that will help to further speed the process.

Advanced BioImaging has raised about $2.5 million since its inception in 2008, including receipt of some government grants, Rubin said.

The company is focusing initially on the food-safety market, but could expand to pharmaceuticals in the future, which would require clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.