DesignMedix Inc.

One of the key ways pathogens survive in patients receiving drug therapy for infection is by physically ridding their cells of the chemicals through molecular mechanisms known as efflux pumps. Given this role, biopharma researchers have been investigating compounds meant to act as efflux pump inhibitors and so increase the efficacy of existing antibacterial and other drugs. Count DesignMedix LLC. in that group. The start-up thinks its approach will eventually give rise to drugs that reverse resistance to fluoroquinolone antibiotics like Cipro, but the company is first working on a potential anti-malarial compound.