Israeli diagnostics startup MeMed is working with hospitals to determine how its 15-minute protein measurement test, which distinguishes viral from bacterial infections, may enhance Covid-19 care.

MeMed measures how the levels of three immune system proteins ‒ TRAIL, IP-10 and CRP ‒ change in response to bacterial and viral infections.

By applying its computational algorithms to these measurements, MeMed aims to help determine whether individuals exposed to Covid-19 – whether or not they have symptoms – have been infected with a pathogen, whether this pathogen is a bacteria or virus, and the potential severity of the infection.

“MeMed and its research collaborators have generated preliminary data suggesting that our three signature proteins exhibit a distinctive expression signature in response to viral infection, even before symptom onset, as well as in infected asymptomatic individuals,” explained Eran Eden, MeMed’s co-founder and CEO.

“An extension of our technology is to move beyond diagnosis of a viral or bacterial infection to looking at potential severity of the infection – which individuals are going to suffer from a mild infection, and which may go on to require a stay in hospital. We can then look at how they are responding to treatment.”

MeMed recently received CE Mark clearance for its testing platform in Europe. Now, MeMed is working with medical centers in Israel, the Netherlands and other countries to validate various applications of the system in Covid-19 patients.