Columbia Technology Ventures

Diagnostic peptides for Lyme disease serodiagnosis

This technology identifies two target peptides for Lyme disease serodiagnosis, enhancing the sensitivity and specificity of early detection.

Unmet Need: Sensitive and specific diagnostic targets for Lyme disease

Lyme disease is the most prevalent tick-borne disease in the United States. Early diagnosis and treatment can prevent both chronic as well as acute disease. Methods for detection of the infectious agent, Borrelia burgdorferi, require biopsies followed by molecular assays that are frequently negative even in patients with an active infection. Thus, the diagnosis of Lyme disease is more commonly made by testing for antibodies in blood using serodiagnostic tests that have limited sensitivity and specificity. The standard two-tiered sero testing protocol performed by clinical labs requires an ELISA followed by a western blot. This test is expensive to run and only identifies 40% of infected individuals in the early stages of the illness when antibiotic treatment is critical in order to prevent severe and persistent disease.

The Technology: Target peptides for improved Lyme disease diagnosis

We have developed a lateral flow test for rapid, inexpensive detection of Lyme disease. Our test is based on the discovery of two peptides in B. burgdorferi that are sensitive and specific for Lyme disease. This test enables rapid, cost-effective testing and has the potential for point-of-care and at-home diagnostic applications.

Applications:

  • Specific peptide targets for Lyme disease diagnosis
  • Accessible serodiagnostic tool for peptide identification
  • Early-stage Lyme disease detection
  • Point-of-care and at-home testing

Advantages:

  • Diagnostic targets with improved sensitivity and specificity
  • Rapid point-of-care results
  • Simple at-home testing
  • Cost-effective
  • Early disease detection

Lead Inventor:

W. Ian Lipkin, M.D.

Patent Information:

Patent Pending

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