Biosignal, US partner to work on biofilm apps

Sydney anti-microbial developer Biosignal (ASX:BOS) has linked up with a major US-based technology evaluation corporation to assess the market potential of its furanone anti-biofilm technology.

Biosignal and its collaborator -- the company is not identified -- will investigate industrial, consumer and health applications, in which anti-bacterial coatings could protect plastics, metals and glass.

Biosignal's anti-microbial molecules are based on furanones secreted by the eastern Australian seaweed Delisea puilchra. The company is exploiting seaweed's novel solution to the fouling problem that bedevils yacht, boat and ship owners by developing furanone-impregnated coatings for a wide range of non-marine applications.

Furanones are not biocides. They do not kill, but disrupt the biochemical signals by which individual bacterial or algal cells sense each other's presence and aggregate into colonies, including mixed-species colonies, a phenomenon called quorum sensing. Most pathogenic bacteria are harmless until they form colonies and begin secreting virulence factors.

Biosignal CEO and MD Michael Oredsson describes the company's anti-biofilm coating technology as "probably the most unique anti-bacterial technology in the world".

By merely deterring bacteria from colonising inert surfaces, rather than killing them, the anti-microbial films do not impose selection pressure that results in the emergence of antibiotic resistant strains.

Oredsson said Biosignal's new collaborator will begin testing the molecules and coatings at its R&D headquarters in the US next month.

Depending on the results, Oredsson said Biosignal will negotiate one or more specific product collaborations with its partner.

Oredsson said the market for coatings for long-wear hydrogel contact lenses has been estimated at US$5 billion alone; the medical device market is worth tens of billions.

Biosignal's coatings could prevent hospital bacteria -- possibly including deadly, multi-resistant Staphylococcus aureus -- from colonising polymer and rubber tubes and seals in medical devices. "We've done 10 years of testing our compounds on a variety of S. aureus strains," Oredsson said.

Other potential applications include protecting the interiors of water and fuel tanks against bacteria and fungi -- some species can even corrode fuel tanks and chemical storage tanks, or contaminate diesel fuel tanks.

Other potential applications include coatings for rainwater tanks, and air-conditioning cooling towers, to prevent colonisation by deadly Legionella bacteria. Some furanones could be used a safe coatings to prevent glass fouling in domestic and commercial aquariums.

"Furanone coatings can tolerate these sorts of environments," Oredsson said. "They can tolerate temperatures up to 130 degrees Celsius, and a pH range between 1 and 9."

Oredsson that company was not looking, at least in the short term, to develop large industrial applications, because current anti-microbial treatments for air-conditioning towers -- for example, used biocides costing around $5 per kilo.

"We would need to show our compounds are not far outside that price range. We think we can do that in some cases, but the real opportunities are in the medical device and contact lens markets," he said.

The contact lens market is the most attractive, because there is no way of preventing bacteria colonising the lenses, other than soaking them in antibacterial solutions, he said.