
The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) handed a $23 million contract to 3 companies, Battelle, NxStage (NSDQ:NXTM) and Aethlon (OTC:AEMD), who will collaborate on a sepsis treatment device for the military.
The project, which DARPA is calling the Dialysis-Like Therapeutics (DLT) program, will be funded in phases and the companies are tasked with building a portable sepsis treatment device.
Battelle is spearheading the collaboration and will oversee the military’s needs and other DARPA program integration. NxStage will design and ultimately manufacture the blood separation device, and Aethlon is working on plans to distribute the device components.
Sepsis and septicemia are common in battle zones, with approximately 10% of wounds becoming infected. The device is intended to offset a soldier’s risk of contracting sepsis by removing blood, treating it, and re-infusing the infection-free blood back into the body, similar to a kidney dialysis machine.
"NxStage is pleased to be chosen as part of this team," said NxStage CEO Jeffrey Burbank in prepared remarks. "We are confident that our leadership in device design will lead to a good outcome for this important DARPA project, ultimately benefitting military personnel and civilians alike."