Blood filtration device could revolutionise how doctors treat disease

A UCL spinout MediSieve has devised innovative blood filtration technology to transform the treatment of malaria, sepsis, leukaemia and COVID-19.

It was while Dr George Frodsham was studying his PhD in Biomechanical Engineering at UCL that he came up with the idea for MediSieve. Having completed his Master’s in Nanotechnology, he drew on his experience to invent a device with the potential to change therapeutics.

Magnetic drug filtration is a method of removing pathogens directly from a patient's bloodstream. The technology is like dialysis, circulating a patient’s blood outside their body. Unlike dialysis, which relies on molecular weight to remove individual blood components, MediSieve uses magnetic particles coated with antibodies to target harmful substances. Magnetic forces then extract the particles from the blood.

MediSieve is currently working on applications for sepsis, malaria and leukaemia. The company is also investigating how it can help patients with severe forms of COVID-19 by filtering inflammatory cytokines from their bloodstream.

In recognition of his ground-breaking work, Dr Frodhsam won at the 2019 BBSRC Innovator of the Year Awards and was named one of MIT Technology Review’s ‘Innovators Under 35, Europe’. UCL Business, part of UCL Innovation & Enterprise, helped Dr Frodsham launch and develop MediSieve. The spinout has received funding from Innovate UK, NIHR and the Wellcome Trust.

Further reading
‘Innovator of the Year Award’ for UCL alumnus who developed revolutionary blood filtration device