Advancing the Future of Lyme Disease Diagnostics

Galaxy Diagnostics partnered with the late Dr. Brandon L. Jutras, Ph.D., to translate breakthrough peptidoglycan science into next-generation diagnostics.

A Scientific Collaboration with Lasting Impact

Galaxy Diagnostics was honored to collaborate with the late Dr. Brandon L. Jutras to help translate transformative Lyme disease research toward clinical application. His pioneering work on Borrelia peptidoglycan established a scientific foundation that continues to inform diagnostic development.

Galaxy Diagnostics became the first commercialization partner for Dr. Brandon L. Jutras’ peptidoglycan diagnostic technology
Collaboration between Galaxy Diagnostics and Dr. Brandon L. Jutras, Associate Professor at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Focused on translating cutting-edge microbiology into clinically actionable Lyme disease diagnostics
Licensed technology originally developed at Virginia Tech
Shared participation in the LymeX Diagnostics Prize Challenge

Scientific Legacy

Remembering Dr. Brandon L. Jutras

Served as a tenured Associate Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology
Was a member of the Center for Human Immunobiology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Was internationally recognized for his work in tick-borne bacterial infections

Credentials

NIH & Department of Defense–funded researcher
Publications in PNAS, Nature Microbiology, Science Translational Medicine
Inventor on multiple diagnostic and therapeutic patents
Award‑winning mentor and educator

A New Diagnostic Target: Peptidoglycan

Why Borrelia Is Different

Borrelia burgdorferi has a structurally unique peptidoglycan cell wall
Unlike other bacteria, fragments can persist in human tissues
Persistence may drive chronic inflammation, including Lyme arthritis

Breakthrough Discoveries

Landmark findings showing bacterial peptidoglycan in human samples
Demonstrated link between cell‑wall fragments and immune activation
Changed understanding of Lyme disease biology

From Discovery to Diagnostic Test

Why This Test

Galaxy Diagnostics became the first commercialization partner for this novel peptidoglycan antigen technology
Novel peptidoglycan antigen enables direct detection of Borrelia infection
Optimized for urine samples, aligning with Galaxy Diagnostics’ platform
Promising specificity and sensitivity in early studies

Why Urine Matters

Evidence‑Driven Development

Clinical Validation

Ongoing clinical validation using 100–200 samples

Data Driven

Data derived from the Prosecco study

Peer-Reviewed

Peer‑reviewed publication with clinical validation expected

Advancing Toward FDA Approval

Details

Why This Work Matters

For Patients

Progress toward more accurate Lyme disease detection

Science‑driven innovation focused on real biological signals

For Providers

Potential future tool to complement existing diagnostic approaches

Grounded in peer‑reviewed research

For the Lyme Community

A bridge between academic discovery and real‑world diagnostics

Model for accelerating innovation in tick‑borne disease

Building the Future of Tick-Borne Diagnostics

Galaxy Diagnostics became the first commercialization partner for Dr. Brandon L. Jutras’ peptidoglycan diagnostic technology.