Luoxis Diagnosis, a newly formed subsidiary of biopharmaceutical company Ampio Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: AMPE), is raising some private capital to move its diagnostics products forward.
Ampio, which develops drugs to treat inflammatory diseases like osteoarthritis and diabetic macular edema, announced last month that it had created Luoxis to commercialize its Oxidation Reduction Potential diagnostics platform, designed to evaluate disease severity and progression across several illnesses. According to the company statement, Ampio would be funded initially with a round of private capital, and the biopharma would retain 80 percent ownership following that round. In a SEC filing last week, the company disclosed it had opened a $5 million private placement.
ORP is a hand-held device used along with disposable strips at the point of care to measure a patient’s total oxidative stress using a drop of blood, similar to the use of a glucometer to measure blood sugar. Over the past few decades, research has pegged oxidative stress as a contributing factor to chronic illnesses including heart attack, stroke and respiratory failure.
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Several direct and indirect methods exist for measuring oxidative stress today, but most are done within a research lab. A few test kits and devices have been developed in an effort to make this measurement more accessible to physicians.
Ampio says clinical trials are underway for the device’s use in acute heart attack, stroke, and critical care patients. In addition to potentially being used as part of the routine medical examination, Ampio says the device may have applications for at-home monitoring and identifying patients at risk for hospital readmission.
The Greenwood Village, Colorado, company is being led by Ampio Chief Operating Officer Josh Disbrow.
