Saladax Licenses Alzheimer’s Diagnostic Tests to Siemens Healthineers

Bethlehem : Saladax Biomedical, Inc., a privately held company focused on precision in-vitro diagnostic tests, announced that it has signed an agreement to license diagnostic tests for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) to Siemens Healthineers. Saladax’s tests identify the amyloid beta 1-42 and tau bio markers in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) which are known and accepted bio markers for AD.

Alzheimer’s Disease is currently the sixth leading cause of death in the U.S., affecting nearly 50 million patients worldwide, with 10 million new cases each year. Presently, no disease-modifying therapeutics exist, and the available drugs provide limited alleviation of symptoms. The use of tests to identify CSF biomarkers much sooner than previously available, will give clinicians the ability to more accurately identify AD and begin treatment sooner. Early detection of AD is also an important step in better understanding the disease.

The two biomarkers have been extensively studied for over 20 years, and are key indicators of the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease. Currently, evidence of early AD can only be determined by PET (positron emission tomography) imaging equipment such as can be found with Siemen’s PETNET Solutions, or biomarkers such as Saladax’s amyloid beta 1-42 and tau tests.

“We are very excited to be working with Siemens Healthineers to bring these important assays to the market,” said Sal Salamone, Ph.D., CEO of Saladax Biomedical, Inc. “Siemens is an ideal partner with a strong global position and high quality instrumentation.”

Under this non-exclusive agreement, Saladax will provide its proprietary raw materials, protocols, and intellectual property and Siemens will be responsible for the commercialization of both assays.