Imbed Biosciences Wins a $2M Award From the U.S. Army to Prevent Combat Wound Infections

MADISON, Wis.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Imbed Biosciences, Inc. (Imbed) announced today that it has been awarded a contract for $1,999,481 by the U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command’s (USAMRDC) Military Infectious Diseases Research Program (MIDRP) to accelerate clinical development of an antibiofilm version of its next-generation Microlyte® Matrix wound dressing that can kill bacteria hidden in biofilms. The contract was awarded through Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium (MTEC) for prototype solutions that prevent combat wound infections following blast injuries and burns.

Combat wound infections are a major risk to warfighter survivability and can delay their return to active duty, posing a significant burden to the Army Health System. Research has shown that greater than 30% of all combat wounds become infected. That percentage is expected to rise in a prolonged field care environment.

This competitive award was made in response to a solicitation from the U.S. Army seeking prototype solutions that prevent warfighter wound infections close to the point of injury without requiring evacuation to higher roles of care, and that enable speedy return of warfighters to duty. The proposed solution will be part of a system to provide an adequate response to traumatic penetrating combat injuries.

“Combat wounds are contaminated with bacteria that start forming biofilms within hours of injury and can lead to failure of treatment, septic shock, and death”, said Ankit Agarwal, co-founder and CEO of the company. “An advanced version of our FDA-cleared Microlyte® Matrix wound dressing kills bacteria hidden in biofilms. The new matrix is ultrathin, bioresorbable, provides a template for cell growth, and can prevent biofilm infections in wounds for several days. This award will fund a prospective human clinical trial of the novel antibiofilm matrix on donor site wounds in patients in need of autologous skin grafts. We are honored to develop this advanced wound matrix for maximizing the readiness and performance of our warfighters in the field.”

About MIDRP:

USAMRDC's MIDRP is one of the six major core research program areas that lead the planning and programming for Army and Defense Health Program research portfolios. As such, MIDRP oversees for DOD a world class requirements-driven infectious diseases Science and Technology program. More information at https://mrdc.amedd.army.mil.

About MTEC:

MTEC is a non-profit enterprise partnership in collaboration with industry and academia to facilitate biomedical research and development activities in cooperation with USAMRDC for U.S. military personnel’s health. For more information, visit mtec-sc.org.

About Imbed Biosciences, Inc.

Imbed is a growth stage privately held biotech company registered with FDA as a medical device manufacturer with an ISO 13485 certified quality management system. The company has a portfolio of products on the market and in development to combat local pain and infections in complex wounds using its patented Microlyte® Matrix technology platform. The research is funded in part by USAMRDC’s OTA Delivery Order #W81XWH-21-9-0007. For more information, visit www.imbedbio.com.