General Atomics

SAN DIEGO, 05 May 2021 - General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) announced today that it has been awarded a contract by the Austere environments Consortium for Enhanced Sepsis Outcomes (ACESO), a program of the Naval Medical Research Center (NMRC) in collaboration with the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc. (HJF), to deploy its MATCHBOX™ prototype portable molecular diagnostic system. Under a six-month base contract period, GA-EMS will deploy MATCHBOX systems with Febrile and Respiratory assay panel cartridges for use at Naval Medical Research Units and partner sites located in Peru and Cambodia. The contract also provides for two additional option years to support further field trial use.

“We’re very excited to deploy the MATCHBOX system for use in these medical sites, as the critical demand for more accurate, rapid and easy to use diagnostic capabilities to support the U.S. Government and commercial clients continues to escalate,” said Scott Forney, president of GA-EMS. “Our pioneering work in developing, manufacturing and delivering this technology demonstrates our unique ability to respond quickly to customer needs, while we continue to accelerate the development of MATCHBOX’s diagnostic capabilities to address applications far beyond these initial trials.”

Using either the MATCHBOX Respiratory or Febrile assay panel cartridge, site personnel will be able to determine whether a patient has a respiratory infection such as COVID-19, Flu A or B, RSV, SARS or MERS, or a febrile (fever causing) illness such as Malaria, Dengue, Chikungunya, Leptospira, or Zika. Determining exactly what the patient has in a single test has the potential to help significantly expedite patient treatment options and facilitate containment to mitigate potential spread.

MATCHBOX is a “one stop shop” for point of care diagnostic testing and can provide results from multiple patient sample types (blood, urine or swab) and environmental samples in 60 minutes or less. The MATCHBOX system design makes it easy for non-trained personnel in the field to quickly test for up to 25 biological targets simultaneously in a single test.

Dr. Danielle Clark of HJF will be one of the study leads. “ACESO’ s mission is to improve survival for patients with severe infections through development of host-based diagnostic and prognostic tools and evidence-based clinical management strategies. A rapid, sample-to-answer diagnostic assay system is an urgent, unmet need. We are excited to partner with GA-EMS to evaluate this exciting technology.”

About General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems

General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) Group is a global leader in the research, design, and manufacture of first-of-a- kind commercial and defense products. GA-EMS’ history of research, development, and technology innovation has led to an expanding portfolio of specialized products and integrated system solutions supporting aviation, space systems and satellites, missile defense, power and energy, medical devices, and processing and monitoring applications for critical defense, industrial, and commercial customers worldwide. For further information, visit www.ga.com/ems.

About HJF

The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc. (HJF) is a global nonprofit that administers more than $500 million in medical research funds annually. For more than 35 years, HJF has partnered with researchers and clinicians to provide bench to bedside to battlefield research support. More than 3,000 HJF teammates ensure HJF is a trusted and responsive partner by providing scientific, administrative and program operations services to researchers in the military, academia, and private industry. For more information, visit hjf.org.

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