The three-year, milestone-driven grant was received from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The Tiger (Triangulation Identification for Genetic Evaluation of Risks) biosensor system is a revolutionary system for the identification of infectious organisms as it can simultaneously identify thousands of infectious organisms without needing to know what might be present in a sample.
This grant reflects the very high level of excitement in the government about the potential of the Tiger biosensor system to revolutionize the identification of infectious diseases in a clinical setting, and represents a significant step forward in commercializing its diagnostic and hospital associated infection control applications, said Michael Treble, president of Ibis and vice president of Isis.
Ibis plans to deliver a Tiger biosensor system this year to the US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID), for use in biological warfare defense; to the Naval Health Research Center and to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), each for use in epidemiological surveillance, and to the Department of Homeland Security, for use in microbial forensics.
From inception through March 31, 2005, Ibis has earned $38.5 million in revenue from government partners. An additional $15.2 million is committed under existing contracts and grants, with the potential for added funding.