Accelr8 Press Release

Contact:
Thomas V. Geimer, CEO
Tel: 303-863-8088
tom.geimer@accelr8.com

Accelr8 Presents Research Results on Direct Bacterial Extraction and “Superbug” Tests

Accelr8 Technology Corporation (Amex:AXK) presented results from three studies related to its development of the BACcel™ rapid pathogen diagnostic platform at the 108^th General Meeting of the American Society of Microbiology in Boston ( www.asm.org)). The meeting is one of the world's largest international meetings for microbiologists.

The first presentation described results from a collaborative study with the Denver Health Medical Center (Colorado) and Connie Price, MD. Dr. Price is the Chief of Infectious Diseases, Denver Health, and Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. The study reported direct extraction of live bacteria from lung lavage specimens (washings from deep in the lungs). The experimental system detected organisms in 8 of 9 specimens found positive by standard culturing methods, and found negative results in 12 of 12 specimens found negative by standard culturing.

The new method produced results in less than two hours after specimen access. Standard culturing usually requires one to two days, which is far too late to help guide the physician's initial choice of therapy. Published research shows that initial therapy, lacking guidance by lab tests, typically proves inadequate in 20% to 40% of cases. For critically ill patients, switching to adequate therapy with even a one-day delay fails to improve the patient's risks.

According to Dr. Price, “this new rapid technology gives us much more information than the simple drug susceptibility index that we now use. For the first time, it lets us analyze live bacteria in real time to see exactly how they respond to specific drugs. We believe that this will help us to learn how to select the best drug for each patient. It also opens up an entirely new research window to help us find ways to counteract the worsening problem of complex drug resistance.”

The second presentation described combined tests for the two most common multi-drug resistance mechanisms encountered in “Staph” infections. The study used a collection of difficult-to-detect strains provided by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta). One test identified the MRSA strain, referred to as a “superbug” in news reports. It resists all members of the largest class of antibiotics, and typically other important classes as well. The experimental BACcel tests correctly identified 100% of the MRSA strains and 100% of the non-MRSA Staph strains.

In the same time period, a different BACcel test identified the next most prevalent mechanism for multi-drug resistance that includes commonly used and important drugs such as erythromycin and clindamycin. The test used the same CDC strain collection. The test correctly classified 98% of resistant strains and 100% of susceptible strains. Both “Staph” tests required less than 4 hours to complete.

All tests used small numbers of bacterial cells, typically 100 to 500 live cells. This number is compatible with testing on bacteria extracted directly from patient specimens, such as those demonstrated in the first presentation. According to David Howson, Accelr8's president, “the two different tests on the same organisms demonstrate how we will include all of the important drug resistance mechanisms in a single specimen run. This is significant because other types of rapid test, such as gene analysis, have performed much less accurately in predicting the additional important types of multi-drug resistance.”

The third presentation described performance of the company's proprietary antibodies used to identify Acinetobacter bacteria. These bacteria can become highly drug resistant, even more so than MRSA. They are hardy environmental organisms that have become endemic in hospitals and virtually impossible to eradicate. They tend to cause major outbreaks that are very difficult to bring under control. They rank as the third most common multi-drug resistant pathogen in serious ICU infections such as pneumonia.

Acinetobacter have also been a major cause of life-threatening infections in military personnel wounded in the Middle East. European hospital strains have apparently spread to the region's military medical facilities, and the infections do not originate from wound contamination at the time of injury.

The company had previously presented data on direct identification of Acinetobacter extracted from model specimens. The new presentation reported the analytical accuracy of the proprietary antibodies when used in a standard assay format. The antibodies now provide 86% sensitivity and 100% specificity when tested against appropriate strain collections. In the standard laboratory test format, the antibodies produced results in less than 4 hours, including sample preparation time.

In explaining the results, Howson said “despite the urgent need for rapid Acinetobacter identification, there are no rapid tests available today. Standard methods usually require two to three days to produce reliable identification. We believe we're on track to develop antibodies that would be suitable for a commercial rapid test format.”

The company's publication list is available at www.accelr8.com/publications.php.

About Accelr8

Accelr8 Technology Corporation (www.accelr8.com) is a developer of innovative materials and instrumentation for advanced applications in medical instrumentation, basic research, drug discovery, and bio-detection. Accelr8 is developing a rapid pathogen analysis and diagnostic platform, the BACcel™ system, based on its innovative surface coatings, assay processing, and detection technologies. In addition, Accelr8 licenses certain of its proprietary technology for use in applications outside of Accelr8's own products.

Certain statements in this news release may be “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Statements regarding future prospects and developments are based upon current expectations and involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from the forward-looking statement, including those detailed in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Accelr8 does not undertake an obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information or future events.

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