XPhyto Therapeutics brings in German infectious disease expert to advise its coronavirus test development

XPhyto Therapeutics Corp (CSE:XPHY) (OTCMKTS:XPHYF) has signed an exclusive advisory agreement with infectious disease expert and Technical University of Munich professor Wolfgang Eisenreich to aid its efforts in developing a coronavirus (COVID-19) test.  Eisenreich heads a research group at the university and the Central NMR Analytics Facility in the nearby city of Garching. His recent work has focused on intracellular pathogenic bacteria and host cell interactions, and in 2015 he won the Max-von-Pettenkofer Prize — an award given every two years for advancement in pathogen science. That level of expertise makes him extremely well suited for the molecular analysis of coronavirus infections, the company said. READ: XPhyto Therapeutics initiates development of accurate, low-cost, coronavirus screening test "The addition of professor Dr. Eisenreich and his unique skill set complements XPhyto's infectious disease initiatives by potentially expediting the identification of specific targets for use in a rapid coronavirus detection platform and may play a role in the validation of natural antiviral therapeutic agents," Xphyto CEO Hugh Rogers said in a statement. "I look forward to working with the XPhyto group of companies, especially if we can make a positive impact on the current coronavirus situation and any other potential pandemic threats," Eisenreich said. "I believe my scientific expertise and that of my team can add value to the task of better understanding how these viruses interact with human cells and ultimately to the development of clinical products." Earlier this week, XPhyto’s wholly-owned German subsidiary Vektor Pharma TF GmbH struck a binding standstill agreement with a European biotechnology company to develop a low-cost, real-time oral pathogen screening platform, which could be used to test for coronavirus. The work is built out of the new infectious disease program Vektor launched at the beginning of March, with the aim of using the cannabis compound cannabigerol (CBG) and virus-fighting plant pigment quercetin. Vektor also produces thin film drug delivery systems like transdermal patches and sublingual strips. The firm’s research will look at thin-film delivery of both CBG and quercetin. Broadly speaking, Vancouver-based XPhyto is investigating the use of enzyme-targeted sensor-film technology for the real-time detection of infectious diseases including coronavirus, with the goal of developing a low-cost, point-of-care, rapid detection test using sensor-film technology. Contact Andrew Kessel at andrew.kessel@proactiveinvestors.com  Follow him on Twitter @andrew_kessel