NetScientific's Vortex BioSciences makes first commercial sale of VTX-1

Healthcare intellectual property commercialisation group NetScientific noted on Tuesday that its portfolio company, Vortex BioSciences, has announced its first direct commercial sale of its VTX-1 Liquid Biopsy System - a fully automated benchtop system for collecting intact circulating tumour cells (CTCs).

The AIM-traded firm said Vortex's VTX-1 Liquid Biopsy System automates the capture and collection of viable CTCs directly from whole blood for analysis.

It said circulating tumour cells, which are shed into the circulation, offered researchers “new insights” into patients' cancer biology.

Using proprietary microfluidics technology, the Vortex VTX-1 traps unlabeled CTCs in microscale vortices from whole blood, allowing researchers to perform processes such as “whole genome amplification” and targeted “next-generation sequencing” to better understand cancer progression and potentially develop new methods of disease identification and monitoring.

“We are delighted to announce the first sale of Vortex's VTX-1, which represents an important step in the company's commercialisation journey,” said Vortex chairman Francois Martelet and NetScientific CEO Francois Martelet.

“The system combines industry-leading purity and high CTC capture rates of between 65%-75%, which we believe can give researchers the opportunity to open new windows into our understanding of cancer.

“Vortex Biosciences is a core element of NetScientific's portfolio, and we believe the performance of the VTX-1 system and its ease of use, will ensure it emerges as a leader in the highly exciting and rapidly developing CTC field.”