2009 ESCMID/bioMérieux Research Grant in Clinical Microbiology

Winner Conducting Research on Major Cause of Healthcare-Associated Infections

Marcy l’Etoile, France - May 12, 2009. bioMérieux, a world leader in in vitro diagnostics, and the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) announce the recipient of their 2009 Research Grant, which recognizes excellence and major contributions to progress in the field of clinical microbiology by a young scientist from Eastern Europe.

This year’s winner, Tatjana Tracevska, 32, works at the Department of Microbiology in the Riga (Latvia) Faculty of Medicine. An assistant professor at the University of Latvia, Dr. Tracevska was awarded for her research project entitled: “Lux S gene: a novel diagnostic tool for the virulent S.epidermidis strains”. Staphylococcus epidermidis is a bacterial strain that is responsible for healthcare-associated infections, affecting in particular immuno-depressed patients. S. epidermidis is resistant to several antibiotics, making its screening in hospital settings essential. The species can also form a biofilm on plastic devices, which increases its resistance to antibiotics, a major concern for patients with catheters or other surgical implants.

“As the world leader in microbiology, bioMérieux created this grant to promote the critical role that microbiology plays in hospital settings to inform clinical decisions. This year’s recipient is doing important work on a key cause of healthcare-associated infections, a strategic disease focus at bioMérieux,” said Thierry Bernard, bioMérieux Corporate Vice President of Commercial Operations.

Initiated in 2004, this annual grant supports a young (under 40) and excellent investigator in the field of diagnostic microbiology, in order to advance laboratory practice and clinical diagnostics in Eastern Europe. The amount granted is €11,000 of which €10,000 are dedicated to the research project and €1,000 to cover the cost of attending the 19th ECCMID 2009 meeting. To be eligible, each research project submitted must be focused on improving the communication between clinical microbiologists and clinicians. Projects can focus on microbial data, the format or rapidity of results and should be of relevance in making recommendations for clinical management or alerting hospitals about healthcare associated infections. Applications are peer-reviewed and the best project is selected based on the application and research proposal.

The 2009 ESCMID/bioMérieux Research Grant in Clinical Microbiology will be presented during the ESCMID Awards Ceremony at the 19th ECCMID in Helsinki (Finland), 16 – 19 May, 2009. Past recipients of this award include: Ivan Nikolaev Ivanov (2008), Anna Skoczynska (2007), Maja Rupnik (2006) and Roman Kozlov (2005).

About bioMérieux
Advancing Diagnostics to Improve Public Health

A world leader in the field of in vitro diagnostics for over 45 years, bioMérieux is present in 150 countries through 39 subsidiaries and a large network of distributors. In 2008, revenues reached €1.111 billion with 84% of sales outside of France.
bioMérieux provides diagnostic solutions (reagents, instruments, software) that determine the source of disease and contamination to improve patient health and ensure consumer safety. Its products are used for diagnosing infectious diseases and providing high medical value results for cancer screening and monitoring and cardiovascular emergencies. They are also used for detecting microorganisms in agri-food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic products. bioMérieux is listed on the NYSE Euronext Paris market (Code: BIM – Code ISIN: FR0010096479). Other information can be found at www.biomerieux.com.

About ESCMID

The European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases is a non-profit organization whose mission is to improve the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of infection-related diseases. This is achieved by promoting and supporting research, education, training, and good medical practice. For more information go to www.escmid.org

bioMérieux Contacts

Media Relations
bioMérieux
Koren Wolman-Tardy
Tel.: + 33 4 78 87 20 08
media@eu.biomerieux.com

Fleishman Hillard
Tim Baker
Tel.: + 1 216 338-8086
tim.baker@fleishman.com  

Image Sept
Laurence Heilbronn
Tel.: + 33 1 53 70 74 64
lheilbronn@image7.fr

Tiphaine Hecketsweiler
Tel.: + 33 1 53 70 74 59
thecketsweiler@image7.fr

ESCMID Contact
Claire Hoffman
Tel.: +44 208 892 5215
claire.hoffman@bartley-robbs.co.uk