Optiscan Imaging (ASX: OIL) has noted commencement of a clinical study that is introducing Optiscan's second generation endomicroscopy platform into the field of gastroenterology.
The study is being undertaken by gastroenterologists and scientists from the Garvan Institute of Medical research and St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney, in affiliation with the University of New South Wales.
The gastroenterology market is now well established as a result of extensive use of Optiscan's previous generation platform via a product marketed by Pentax Medical Corporation.
The study has enabled the incorporation of the latest advances in Optiscan's technology into a high definition Olympus endoscope.
The resultant system combines advanced features of the Olympus endoscope with Optiscan's latest developments in microscopic imaging during endoscopy.
The result is an endoscope with a level of performance never before trialled in humans, incorporating desirable features discovered using the first generation product during thousands of endoscopy procedures, and other advances in endoscopic imaging.
This study will apply these novel features in dynamic events relating to the permeability, or "leakiness" of the gut lining and how it is altered by inflammatory diseases.
For Optiscan, the commencement of patient recruitment in this study is a key milestone in its strategy to advance the second generation platform into commercially viable markets.
The same platform is currently the subject of product development for neurosurgery under a commercial partnership with Carl Zeiss of Germany, as well as a supply agreement recently secured with UK based MR Solutions for global supply into the pre-clinical imaging market.
Optiscan is capitalised at around $10 million.
Proactive Investors Australia is the market leader in producing news, articles and research reports on ASX “Small and Mid-cap” stocks with distribution in Australia, UK, North America and Hong Kong / China.