MIDDLETOWN—Bioscience start‐up Ischemia Care marked its one‐year anniversary in its new space at Dayton Children’s Middletown, adding another milestone to a year that included the completion of clinical trials and the launch of a collaboration with a local school.
“We could go anywhere, but we choose to stay in the Dayton Region,” said Jeff June, Ischemia Care CEO and Founder. “From our Accelerant Funding, to our partnerships with local clinicians, to our ability to encourage local early adopters, Dayton has supported us every step of the way.”
Ischemia moved its 8 employees to Middletown in 2017 in order to collaborate more closely with the regional medical community.
Ischemia Care developed a proprietary genetic test that can identify the cause of a stroke. In about 40 percent of stroke patients, the cause is unknown, even though identifying the cause has a major impact upon the course of treatment. The test uses gene expression, or markers left behind after medical events, to diagnose the cause of stroke, and will hopefully lead to more specific treatments.
In February, Edward C. Jauch, MD, Professor and Chair of Emergency Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina, presented positive clinical data demonstrating the ability of the ISCDxtm Test to identify cause of ischemic stroke at the 2018 International Stroke Conference held in Los Angeles, California. Dr. Jauch is lead Principal Investigator for the Biomarkers of Acute Stroke Etiology (BASE) clinical trial.
The analysis showed, in a small sample size, that the diagnostic test was able to accurately diagnose the cause of a stroke. Publication of a similar analysis from a much larger and statistically significant data set will occur later this year. The testing clears the way for hospitals to use the blood test to accurately diagnose their stroke patients. The company expects to see its test implemented by select facilities in the next 6 weeks.
“It’s our job to help the companies we want to grow in our community,” said Roger Edwards, the Dayton Development Coalition’s Vice President of the Accelerant Venture Fund. “Jeff June and his team at Ischemia Care have worked hard to attract investment from all over the country and put that capital to work. It’s so exciting to see how far they’ve come.”
In addition to the development of the test, June and his colleagues have partnered with the entrepreneurial program at The Miami Valley School. Students who visit Ischemia Care’s labs see firsthand how an entrepreneur moves from an idea to a business with a viable product.
“Ischemia Care provided our students a unique glimpse into a science‐focused startup that may widen their perspective on what kinds of entrepreneurial ventures are available to them, we are thrilled to have such an exciting and supportive partner in our local community,” said Jay Scheurle, Head of the Miami Valley School.
The partnership speaks to the benefit of having a strong start‐up community investing in the next generation of innovators, and could be the spark that ignites a new company in years to come.
Ischemic Stroke Lab is a clinical laboratory division of Ischemia Care, a pioneer in the field of stroke, engaged in diagnostic test commercialization, clinical trial operations, and laboratory testing to improve patient outcomes and reduce healthcare costs.
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