MeMed Key

The challenge was to translate MeMed’s manually executed benchtop ELISA assay into a compact, automated point-of-need platform that could deliver reliable lab quality insights in under 15 minutes. The system had to preserve analytical sensitivity while integrating three parallel immunoassays, precise fluid handling at microlitre scale, compact optical detection, thermal control, and an intuitive workflow for acute clinical environments. The brief also required a manufacturable product with design decisions aligned to scalable production, supply continuity, regulatory readiness, and reliable global deployment through a close development and manufacturing partnership.

In the race against antimicrobial resistance, the design breakthrough was moving infection diagnosis out of the central lab and into the GP office or acute care setting. What once depended on a large benchtop instrument and sample transport, often delaying results by days, was miniaturised into MeMed Key, a compact automated platform delivering results in 15 minutes. MeMed and Invetech achieved this by integrating three parallel immunoassays, microlitre fluid handling, highly sensitive optical detection, thermal control and an intuitive workflow, then translating the design into a scalable, manufacturable system ready for real-world deployment.

MeMed Key creates impact by turning complex infection diagnostics into a fast, accessible and manufacturable point-of-need system. In high-volume clinical settings, doctors cannot wait 24 hours for central lab results, then ask patients to return before making treatment choices. For every 1-hour delay in sepsis treatment, the odds of a poor outcome increase by 4%. By delivering bacterial versus viral infection insights in 15 minutes, MeMed Key changes what is possible in the race against treating bacterial infections with antibiotics as soon as possible. Societally, it supports more informed care and antimicrobial stewardship.

MeMed Key brings advanced host-response diagnostics into a compact point-of-need format. The platform runs MeMed BV® in approximately 15 minutes from serum or venous whole blood, distinguishing bacterial from viral infection through multiplexed immune protein measurement. Its small footprint, 250 mm high, 250 mm wide and 340 mm deep, and 7.5 kg weight make it suitable for acute and decentralised clinical settings. As of April 2026, a next-generation MeMed BV Flex test is also designed to run from a few drops of finger-prick capillary blood, on top of whole blood, extending rapid infection insights closer to the patient.