BG Medicine, Abbott partner on heart attack mortality test

March 9, 2010 by MassDevice staff

BG Medicine Inc. signed a deal to develop its heart attack mortality test for use in a handheld blood analyzer made by medical device giant Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT).

Waltham, Mass.-based BG said it will develop its galectin-3 biomarker for use in the Abbott Point of Care i-STAT System, a handheld diagnostic tool that provides real-time blood results.

According to the terms of the deal, Abbott Park, Ill.-based Abbott will be responsible for the development of the test, while both companies will work together to get the test through the regulatory process and complete clinical utility testing, according to a press release.

Last month, BG touted the results of a study published in the journal Clinical Research in Cardiology, which showed that the galectin-3 biomarker was "a significant predictor of mortality risk."

The trial followed 232 patients with an average age of 71 (plus or minus a decade), 72 percent of whom were male. After six-and-a-half years, 98 of the patients, or 37.4 percent, had died.

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