We worked alongside Microbira to successfully deliver an enhanced web application for their existing researcher toolkit.

Microbira specialises in using artificial intelligence combined with Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy to improve the efficiency of healthcare delivery. FTIR involves light being passed through materials and measuring the absorbance at different wavelengths.

When there is an infection or a widespread outbreak, it can take days to identify the microorganism causing it. Microbira’s technology allows the microorganism to be identified in 5 minutes post-culture. Microbira use infrared spectroscopy of samples from the patient.

Microbira and System C have built a software solution connected to their lab equipment that analyses the infrared spectra using AI to identify over 40 clinically relevant species, including Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Candida auris, and Shigella species. The 40 most common species cover 85% of what would be found routinely- the remaining species are not very common. This drastically improves the chances of optimal treatment and even survival in serious infections, such as in sepsis cases.

Identifying and classifying potentially hazardous organisms is highly important for diagnostic and quality control purposes. Microbira’s work will therefore target industries such as clinical microbiology, infectious diseases, veterinary, food/beverage, plus pharmaceutical and microorganism research.

System C has developed a number of cloud-hosted medical devices, notably QCovid, ParkAI and Cytox. We have also worked with the project’s regulatory consultant (BCS Clinical Consulting) previously and were familiar with their approach.

How does Microbira work?

The process begins by culturing a clinical or food specimen on culture media agar. Once the microorganism has grown, its ATR-FTIR spectra are collected. These spectra are then uploaded onto the unique software called Microbira Advanced Analytical Platform -Infrared or MAAP-IR. After uploading, the results can be reviewed directly on MAAP-IR, and if needed, a report can be downloaded.

A diagram of the process of Microbira

How we worked together

Microbira tasked us with transforming their existing suite of research scripts into a web application with additional functionality. System C has considerable experience delivering similar medical device software solutions.

We worked closely with Microbira throughout the development and certification of Microbira MAAP-IR. Development was structured around weekly agile sprints, with a clear task list that included building the web solution, conducting code reviews, and performing testing. Each process was aligned with medical device standards. In parallel, we guided the documentation process required to certify MAAP-IR as a medical device.

Marianne Ismail, Chief Executive Officer of Microbira, shared her experience:
“From the time Microbira was introduced to System C by our Clinical Consulting Company, the team at System C grasped our project needs immediately. We wanted a reputable company that would be familiar with clinical software development and process from the lab to commercialisation with the required regulatory approvals. System C understood our budget and time constraints. Their project summary and cost breakdown impressed the Microbira Board and gained swift approval.”

Marianne continues to say that, “System C has been a tremendous asset in the development of our microorganism identification software. We felt they were partners in the whole process, and we are already planning to use their expertise in the next part of our expansion.”

Our web developers developed a cloud-hosted solution on Microsoft Azure. We created a web application version to allow clinical users to submit samples to the Microbira Advanced Analytical Platform – Infrared (MAAP-IR) for analysis. This gave Microbira a more efficient system to support their ongoing scientific research, which is a regulated medical device software.

Key achievements

The delivery of this new web application provides many benefits to Microbira’s day-to-day operations. Some of the key advantages include:
• Improved ability to manage and analyse results
• Real-time, client-specific results
• Remote sample submission via the web
• Enhanced security

Fulfilling user-requested improvements

We remain in close contact with our customers and will make sure that the development team that helped them with their project will be available for any future work they need. In this case, Microbira returned 3 years later and asked for several significant enhancements and new features to be implemented, in order to greatly improve the user experience and accuracy of the software.

Users can now navigate the new on-screen validation process more easily, allowing them to keep track of verified versus non-verified results more efficiently. The integration of a sequential database has reduced inconclusive results, enabling users to narrow down their microorganism identification process to more specific techniques.

Impact on users and workflows

The addition of new features has also positively impacted the workflow for both lab staff and clinicians, who can now quickly differentiate between completed, working, rejected, and verified jobs.

This has also reduced jobs and shortened time to results. Furthermore, users have provided even more positive feedback, noting the ease of obtaining results and improvements in predictions for specific species, as well as a reduction in inconclusive results.

Faster identification, including Gram-type differentiation, has been particularly appreciated.

Security and technology updates

Security updates, suggested by System C and approved by Microbira, have been critical in addressing vulnerabilities in core technologies, ensuring regulatory compliance, and enhancing the overall security and reliability of the MAAP-IR platform. These updates have bolstered confidence in the robustness of the software as a medical device.

Testing and medical device compliance

Maintaining medical device standards for MAAP-IR is vital to ensure safety, traceability, and accountability. Our commitment to quality and regulatory standards is demonstrated through key milestones such as:
• The software development plan
• Conformity plan
• Statement of intended use
• Validation plan
• Data protection impact assessment
• Release notes

The software updates have positioned MAAP-IR as a commercially ready tool, with clinical performance and user acceptance validated through user acceptance testing (UAT).

These enhancements have opened new opportunities, attracting customers overseas and expanding into new industries such as veterinary. The improved MAAP-IR supports Microbira’s strategic goal of achieving over 95% performance for clinically relevant microorganisms, such as ESKAPE pathogens, while enabling flexible strain typing.

Next steps

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If you have a project similar to Microbira, then please contact us to discuss how we could help your ideas and products realise their full potential.