When a patient arrives with a bacterial infection, doctors may have to choose an antibiotic before laboratory tests confirm which one will work. A sensitivity test checks which antibiotic can kill the bacteria in a patient’s sample, but standard testing takes 24 to 48 hours. The first prescription, including the dose, therefore often relies on an assumption.

That has consequences beyond the first few days of treatment. Antibiotics taken when they are not needed, or in excess, contribute to antimicrobial resistance, making the drugs less effective against bacteria.

Chennai-based Attox Research Laboratories is developing a device to shorten that wait. Its flagship product, the Bactolizer, is designed to identify the effective antibiotic and the correct dose from a list of 15 antibiotics in about 30 minutes to two hours.

Attox was founded in 2023 by Clement, Suganth and Senthil. Clement holds an MBA and has more than 18 years of experience in startup building and organisational management. Suganth holds a Bachelor of Pharmacy degree and was an undergraduate researcher under Senthil, who has a PhD in analytical chemistry and more than 20 years of experience in teaching and research.

"We ideally want the first antibiotic to be the right antibiotic," Clement says.

The 10-member team is based in Chennai and works from a laboratory in Erode. Attox is incubated at Kongu TBI and IIM Bangalore and has completed IIT Bombay's ATMAN 3.0 accelerator programme.

The Bactolizer has two parts: a signal processing unit and a disposable electrochemical cartridge. A patient's sample goes into the cartridge, which is then loaded into the device.

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