Signaling brighter.

We're specialists at meeting clinical needs through developing and improving assays where probes and targets bind and are detected entirely in the solution phase, the category of assays known as homogeneous assays. With homogeneous assays avoiding issues with binding epitope availability and other potential confounding effects in assays based on binding to a solid phase, Wave 80's advances in homogeneous-format assays have wide-ranging applications.

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Extracting more.

Erroneous results in clinical laboratory testing often stem not from a problem with the assay itself, but with how the sample was collected and prepared to be run. Our Infra technology is specifically designed to address the most persistent sample prep challenge for conventional molecular testing and sequencing: ensuring recovery of low-concentration target analytes in complex matrices like sputum.

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Solving the most difficult assay development problems

Poor binding epitope availability. Extremely low target analyte concentrations. Unfavorable kinetics. Low-resource use environments. For these and other persistent challenges that can arise in developing an assay—whether as a research tool, for personalized medicine, or for conventional diagnosis of disease—Wave 80 technology and know-how is the solution.

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Technologies and products for the toughest bioassay problems

From infectious disease to autoimmune disorders, we’re working to improve patient outcomes in wide-ranging areas in human health and disease.

Signaling methods.  Probe design.  Sample prep.  Miniaturization.  Process automation.  Wave 80’s capabilities touch on many of the key factors that go into developing and improving an assay.

INFRA Sample Prep Technology

INNOVATIVE MONOLITH-BASED DESIGN

INFRA combines highly optimized monolith designs and liquid micropiston technology for speed and yield.

ENHANCED CHEMISTRY

Fine-tuning the chaotropic components brings astounding performance.

Liquid Micropiston technology

Liquid Micropiston (LMP) technology powers incredible assay performance.

UNIMPEDED KINETICS

Ultrafast transient LMP response jump-starts assays where volumes of the liquid phases are in the sub-millimeter range.

HIGHLY SCALABLE

The extraordinary performance of LMPs comes at a manufacturing cost of only pennies per chip.

Representative Projects and Products

With evolving roles for the U.S. military creating new needs for Special Operating Forces (SOF) medics for improved infectious disease diagnostics to use in caring for both their fellow servicemembers and for individuals in local populations, Wave 80 and its partner Squid Labs delivered the technology to fully automate assays for which medics were previously required to perform multiple steps manually.  Hands-on time saved can be devoted to providing better care and to maintaining situational awareness.SOF Micro Lab
SOF Micro LabTechnical leads: Ian Gibbons, Geo Homsy, Corwin Hardham, Luis Garcia.
As the unique vaccine development challenges posed by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) came into focus, new approaches to stemming the tide of the HIV epidemic emerged as a high priority.  Based on promising results around transmission dynamics from small studies in high-risk patient populations, scientists sought a highly detailed understanding of viral propagation in the first days post-infection, and turned to Wave 80 for help.   Working under contract with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, we developed improved methods and tools for amplifying and detecting viral genomic material that filled key capability gaps.  This work ultimately contributed to the development of pre-exposure prophylaxis, an intervention widely credited with significantly reducing new HIV infections.Tools for Studying HIV Pathogenesis At the Earliest Stages of Infection
Tools for Studying HIV Pathogenesis At the Earliest Stages of InfectionTechnical leads: Amy Droitcour, Andy Arsham, Laura Mazzola
For diseases like tuberculosis and HIV, detecting even tiny amounts of viral genomic material can be critical, and samples like sputum, whole blood and nasopharyngeal swabs each pose significant challenges.  Wave 80 and its development partners Boston University and the Fraunhofer Institute Center for Manufacturing Innovation developed a suite of high-performance sample acquisition and preparation modules to address a wide range of these challenges, including accommodating high patient-to-patient viscosity variability in sputum and accommodating hematocrit effects blood.Acquiring and Processing Sputum and Other Challenging Sample Types to Ensure High Yield, Even for Low-Concentration Target Analytes
Acquiring and Processing Sputum and Other Challenging Sample Types to Ensure High Yield, Even for Low-Concentration Target AnalytesTechnical Leads: Shan Gao, Catherine Klapperich, Alexis Sauer-Budge
In type 1 diabetes and other autoimmune diseases, accurately measuring levels of autoantibodies  at different stages of disease progression is essential from the standpoint of both individual patient care and development of new therapies.  Working with UCSF endocrinologist Stephen Gitelman, Wave 80 has developed a suite of homogeneous assay methods that address poor binding epitope availability and other persistent challenges detection and measurement of autoantibodies.  As plate-format versions of these assays approach release into the clinic, work is ramping up on systems that combine these new assay methods with Wave 80's liquid micropiston technology to yield even more compelling solutions for patients and drug developers in autoimmune disease.Autoantibody Detection and Quantitation
Autoantibody Detection and QuantitationTechnical leads: Amy Droitcour, Andy Arsham