NEW YORK – Molecular diagnostics startup Spindiag announced on Monday that it is seeking strategic investors amid preliminary insolvency proceedings.
The German firm said that it is facing challenging market conditions caused by the rapid decline in COVID-19 testing. The company, which is a spinoff of Hahn-Schickard and the University of Freiburg, remains operational and is actively seeking strategic investors to support its restructuring plan and growth strategy, the firm said in a statement.
Spindiag's rapid point-of-care diagnostics system, called Rhonda, performs multiplex spinning disc PCR testing in one hour or less directly from standard swab samples. The system has the potential to detect up to 36 pathogens from a single specimen, and test results are displayed directly on the device and transmitted digitally to the Rhonda app and hospital HIS/LIS systems.
The firm has developed a portfolio for respiratory pathogens including influenza A/B, respiratory syncytial virus, and SARS-CoV-2, as well as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. The company claims to have performed nearly 1 million tests for COVID-19 and other infectious diseases since launching Rhonda in 2020 with a focus on hospital testing in Germany.
Spindiag is also in the process of making Rhonda's turnaround time in the range of 15 minutes and is developing new applications that leverage high multiplexing.
Spindiag CEO and Cofounder Daniel Mark said the firm is "confident that with the right strategic partner, we can overcome the current challenges and continue to deliver value to our customers and society."