Vivione Biosciences Inc. (
TSX: V.VBI,
Stock Forum) is gearing up to achieve more milestones this year as the company prepares to commercialize the RAPID-B pathogen detection system, which it has been co-developing in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) National Center for Toxicological Research in Pine Bluff, Arkansas.
“We officially launched last year after taking the company public on the TSV Venture Exchange and raising $6 million. We expect to begin generating revenue and contacts in the second quarter of this year,’’ said Vivione Chief Executive Officer Kevin Kuykendall in an interview with Stockhouse.
Roughly the size of a desktop computer, RAPID-B consists of hardware, software and wet-ware (reagent test kits) that tests bacteria in key environments including food production, oil field services, and clinical diagnostics.
In food manufacturing, for example, RAPID-B can be used to test for the presence of E.coli 0157 and non-0157 STECs in beef.
A key advantage is that the system can provides test results in seven hours or less. That compares with current rival diagnostic platforms that provide the same test results in 24 hours to five days.
Faster results allows food manufacturers to obtain their test results in near real time for the first time, which in turn allows them to reduce their chemical costs, reduce inventory hold times, and ultimately mitigate their potential recall risks.
“This is our first real year of commercialization,’’ Kuykendall said.
“In May, we anticipate receiving Association of Analytical Communities (AOAC) certification for our e-coli 0157 and non-0157 STECS (an additional six adulterants in E-Coli), which will allow food producers to deploy our equipment for testing up to and including the end product, potentially allowing the company to sell worldwide,’’ he said.
AOAC certification for Salmonella is expected to follow before the end of 2014, and Listeria in mid-2015
Vivione has been developing the RAPID-B system since 2006 in co-operation with FDA-NCTR. To buy one costs about $125,000, orhey can be leased $4,000 a month.
The Vivione CEO attributes the fast test results to the use of a flow cytometer in the RAPID-B system. A flow cytometer is an instrument that utilizes a laser to analyze a sample, optically illuminating every particle in a liquid sample.
The resulting signal from each individual microscope particle is then viewed in real time for a multitude of characteristics.
“Using our flow cytometer, we are able to see the size, shape and refractive index that, when coupled with specific targeting reagents like antibodies, allows us to pick out a specific bacteria amidst a multitude of debris (including other cells and the sample matrix itself) in the sample,’’ he told CEOCFO Magazine recently.
“By examining a multitude of characteristics for each cell, we can confidently identify individual bacteria cells that are viable in the sample,’’ Kuykendall said.
“The RAPID-B system allows us to see a single cell of bacteria, and this sensitivity enables tremendous time savings when compared with competing systems looking for the signal from a multitude of bacteria.’’
While initial revenue is expected to come from the food sector, the company’s other lines of business are expected to include the following:
Clinical diagnostics: Rapid-B system can be used to detect and control infections in hospitals and facilities, speed clinical diagnostics and enable clinical research.
Industrial Microbiology: In the oil industry, for example, the equipment can be used to test for sulphur-reducing bacteria (SRB) in oil and gas wells that would clog up the well and reduce the flow of oil.
The idea is to prevent companies from spending millions of dollars to drill conventional oil or fracking wells and have the bacteria accumulate and either eat through the drill pipe or clog it.
In any discussions with the CEOs and CFOs of potential customers, Kuykendall says he prefers to talk about what the economic benefits of the RAPID-B system rather than the technology itself.
Kuykendall has a deep background in finance. He is a founding member and CEO of ethanol company White Energy, and Health20 (Nutraceuticals). He is experienced in both early stage and start-up fund raising for various ventures.
“My job is to get the company financed, hire the senior management team, set the strategy, get the products commercialized, expand the product pipeline and take the company to the next level,’’ he said.
“We’re on track for the strategy we set in 2013 and feel we’re actually a year ahead in the development of several key areas, including our oil services and clinical offerings. We have several deals in the hopper, and are in the final stages of negotiations which should allow us to start driving revenue in the second quarter of 2014.”
Vivione reported a loss of $756,452 or $0.01 a share in the quarter ended September 30, 2013, when total revenue was $4,750. That compares to a year earlier loss of $386,396 or $0.02, when revenue was $133,306.
In the nine months ended September 30, 2013 the company posted a loss of $2.9 million or 5 cents a share, on revenue of $432,077 that was generated mainly from equipment and product sales to the FDA. That compares to a loss of $1.26 million or $0.06 a share in the equivalent 2012 period, when revenue was $33.
This year, the company hopes to generate up to $2 million in revenue in 2014, marking a 400% increase from 2013 revenues.
By 2015, Vivione expects to have a large footprint in the food sector in North America as well as in Europe. The company believes its clinical applications will begin generating revenue in late 2015 or early 2016.
The stock rose 2.2% to 23 cents on Thursday, leaving a market cap of $8.6 million, based on 37.4 million shares outstanding. The 52-week range is 40 cents and 18 cents.
Disclosure: Vivione Biosciences (V.VBI) is a Stockhouse client.