X-ZELL signs research collaboration agreement with Diagnostics Development Hub

Singapore, December 2018 – In a move that will accelerate the company’s capabilities and scale up its commercialisation and product development processes, X-ZELL has partnered with Singapore’s Diagnostics Development (DxD) Hub.

DxD Hub is a national initiative led by Singapore’s public innovation and enterprise office, A*ccelerate Technologies (formerly ETPL). DxD Hub’s mission is to fast-track the transformation of early-stage research into clinically validated diagnostic devices that are ready for market adoption.

The collaboration between the two organisations was officially launched at the start of December with the opening of an X-ZELL satellite laboratory on DxD’s Singapore premises.

“X-ZELL is an exciting organisation with a compelling vision for the future of cancer detection,” DxD CEO, Dr Sidney Yee, commented on the launch. “We believe it can add value to the Singaporean health technology landscape and are looking forward to working with the team here in Singapore.”

Echoing the sentiment, X-ZELL CEO, Dr Sebastian Bhakdi, said collaborating with the prolific institution and tapping into the DxD talent pool will give the young rare-cell detection specialist a significant boost.

“We are extremely proud to become part of the DxD family,” he explained. “X-ZELL has seen tremendous growth in 2018 and is now at a stage where we are ready to take the next step. As the region’s best-connected, most influential biotechnology hub, DxD is the perfect fit to help us do so.”

According to Dr Bhakdi, DxD will not only allow X-ZELL to scale up the company’s current commercialisation processes, but also help it accelerate future product development.

Phase one of the collaboration agreement will see X-ZELL’s unique atypical cell detection technology – key to the company’s first liquid biopsy for early prostate cancer detection – undergo stringent independent testing by DxD Hub, he explained.

Phase two will then see the launch of a prospective, blinded multi-centre study to validate the clinical performance of X-ZELL Prostate™, as well as the global rollout of the underlying platform technology.

On the back of the milestone announcement, Dr Bhakdi also announced that X-ZELL will open a new routine lab in Singapore and move the company’s global head office to the island state during Q1’19.

“Singapore has firmly established itself as a global hub for diagnostics innovation and development,” he said, revealing that the company’s entire executive team will be relocated to the Lion City in the coming months.

“It is both a gateway to the rest of Asia, as well as a channel to access the international markets, so for us it is the perfect location to build a global enterprise.

“With this in mind, I am not exaggerating when I say this is the most important commercial arrangement we’ve entered into since the inception of X-ZELL.”

Media Contact:
Sebastian Grote
Head of Marketing & Communications
media@x-zell.com