Frailty diagnosis through biomarkers

TechnologyŠpanielskoTOES20210204003
Offers
Summary: 
A Spanish (Basque) scientific foundation specialized in R&D and innovation management for the healthcare system seeks a company to license an in vitro (biomarker-based) method for diagnosing and/or predicting whether an individual is or is likely to become frail.
Description: 
Frailty is defined as a geriatric condition or syndrome characterised by a decline in functional reserve and adaptive capacity in older people. This decline leads to a general worsening in health that tends to progress towards dependency. Unlike dependency, frailty is reversible and there is substantial evidence of the effectiveness of interventions based on muscle strengthening through exercise, improving diet, and reducing polypharmacy, among other approaches. Frailty is independently associated with an elevated risk of death, loss of independence, falls and fractures, hospitalisations and reductions in health-related quality of life. It is very important to identify frail older individuals as it makes it possible, through personalised interventions tailored to the needs of individuals and their families, to slow the natural progression of frailty towards dependency. This invention provides a new method for the diagnosis of frail individuals and distinguishing them from more robust or dependent individuals based on measurements of the level of protein expression and/or transcription of a range of molecular markers identified by complete transcriptome analysis. The organization is offering a license agreement to experienced companies from the health sector interested in acquiring this technology. Although it is not compulsory, it would be preferable for the partner to be a healthcare facility so that the validation of the method can be carried out.
Type (e.g. company, R&D institution…), field of industry and Role of Partner Sought: 
The Spanish (Basque) organization is offering a license agreement to experienced companies in preclinical and clinical development of medical devices and diagnostic kits interested in acquiring this technology. Moreover, this license offer seeks both options: On the one side, companies willing to commercialise, but also companies interested in enhancing the invention. It would be preferable for the partner to be a healthcare facility so that the validation of the method can be carried out. Nevertheless, this is not compulsory.
Stage of Development: 
Under development/lab tested
Comments Regarding Stage of Development: 
The expression of biomarkers has been validated in a population cohort that includes both robust and fragile individuals.
IPR Status: 
Patent(s) applied for but not yet granted
Comments Regarding IPR Status: 
Patent Application PCT Priority Date: 27/07/2018
External code: 
TOES20210204003