Ambri appoints business development manager

Biosensor developer Ambri (ASX: ABI) has appointed a new business development manager to drive sales of its SensiDx System throughout the Asia Pacific region.

Gavin Holland joined the company this week, bringing with him experience within the medical diagnostics industry with such companies as Abbott Diagnostics and DuPont Medical Products.

Holland is to be responsible not only for sales of the system within the region, but will also assist Ambri in identifying new business opportunities and markets. He will also take responsibility for the creation of a distribution group in the region, and will identify and negotiate distribution rights for products in related fields.

The SensiDX System, still undergoing testing, is intended to detect and measure drugs, hormones, viruses or bacteria in whole blood by converting measurements into electrical signals.

The company said the first application would be to detect pregnancy hormone hCG and markers indicating possible heart attack.

It is hoped the system will help emergency departments save time and costs by producing a test result in five minutes, as opposed to four to 24 hours for typical pathology laboratories.

Managing director and CEO Joe Shaw said the system had the capability to expand to more than 40 critical care tests. "The ability to add additional tests allows for greater flexibility and potentially unlimited applications for the SensiDx System" Shaw said.

Current tests are helping to collect information that will be put forward as part of the company's application for United States approval to market hCG and three cardiac marker tests.