Galaxy Diagnostics and Virginia Tech Unite to Advance Testing for Lyme Disease
By Nicole Danielle Bell, CEO of Galaxy Diagnostics and author of What Lurks in the Woods
When a Test Fails a Patient
When diagnostics fail patients, the consequences are real. I’ve lived it. My husband tested negative using the current standard-of-care test for Lyme disease—even though we later learned Lyme was a critical root of his illness. Like so many families, we trusted the test result. And I still ask myself: if we had access to better diagnostic tools at that first doctor’s visit, would Russ still be alive today?
That experience changed the course of my life. It set me on a journey to help ensure that other patients don’t face the same uncertainty and delay.
Moving Beyond Antibodies: A Direct Detection Approach
It ultimately led me to Galaxy Diagnostics, a company focused on advancing tick-borne disease diagnostics beyond indirect signals and toward direct detection of the pathogen itself. Instead of relying on antibodies—which can be absent, delayed, or misleading—Galaxy focuses on measuring direct pathogen-derived markers.
For Lyme disease, this means detecting proteins shed by Borrelia and cleared into urine through a noninvasive urine antigen test.
This approach originated in discovery research at George Mason University, was first commercialized by Ceres Nanosciences, and has since been optimized at Galaxy for clinical use and real-world patient testing. The promise of this work has been recognized nationally: Galaxy was selected as one of only seven teams to advance to Phase 4 of the LymeX diagnostic prize challenge.
LymeX—jointly funded by the Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services—was created to accelerate innovative Lyme diagnostics on a clear path toward FDA review and approval.
Choosing Collaboration Over Competition
Seven teams working, largely independently, to solve the same problem. But over more than 25 years of bringing new technologies to market, I’ve learned one lesson repeatedly: silos kill innovation. Breakthroughs rarely come from working in isolation. They come from recognizing complementary ideas and choosing collaboration over competition.
From Galaxy’s perspective, the other LymeX teams were never adversaries—they were opportunities. And one stood out early.
A Novel Target: Borrelia Peptidoglycan
Soon after joining Galaxy, I asked Dr. Jennifer Miller, now our Vice President of Clinical and Scientific Operations, which alternative diagnostic approaches she found most compelling. Without hesitation, she pointed to the work of Dr. Brandon Jutras at Virginia Tech.
Dr. Jutras and his team identified a novel diagnostic target for Lyme disease: peptidoglycan, a structural component of the Borrelia cell wall. While peptidoglycan is common across bacteria, Borrelia’s peptidoglycan is biologically distinct—and critically, his research demonstrated that Borrelia actively releases peptidoglycan fragments during growth and division.
These fragments are inflammatory, biologically persistent, and increasingly understood to circulate systemically. Based on their size and chemistry, emerging evidence demonstrates that they can be cleared through the kidneys and detected in urine—making peptidoglycan a scientifically compelling and patient-friendly complement to Galaxy’s existing urine antigen detection strategy.
December 2025: A Turning Point
For me, December 2025 marked a pivotal shift in the trajectory of Lyme diagnostics. Two events, in particular, give me renewed hope that better answers are on the horizon.
First, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services convened a Lyme disease roundtable, publicly acknowledging the millions of patients affected and the urgent need for better diagnostic tools. HHS reaffirmed its commitment to the LymeX initiative and signaled that additional federal efforts would follow to advance meaningful, patient-centered solutions.
Second, Galaxy officially joined forces with Dr. Jutras, entering into an exclusive license agreement with Virginia Tech for his groundbreaking work. Over the coming year, we will collaborate to collect and study clinical samples, with the goal of evaluating complementary antigen targets across different stages of Lyme disease.
Together, we aim to advance this work toward FDA submission—developing diagnostics that make earlier, more reliable Lyme detection accessible to patients, and as simple as peeing in a cup.
A Full-Circle Scientific Reunion
In many ways, this collaboration feels like coming full circle. Dr. Miller and Dr. Jutras first worked together more than two decades ago at the University of Kentucky, where both completed their PhD training studying the complexities of Borrelia. They remained committed to the field but followed different paths.
Dr. Jutras advanced in academia, conducting world-class research at Yale University, and later leading research programs at Virginia Tech and now Northwestern University. Dr. Miller focused on translating science into clinical reality, developing deep expertise in assay verification and validation through her work at Galaxy and by leading data collection efforts for FDA submissions at a top contract research organization.
Seeing these two scientists—each with distinct, complementary strengths—reunite around a shared mission gives me profound hope that stories like my husband’s will one day be stories of the past.
The Tide Is Turning
As we enter 2026, the momentum in tick-borne disease is undeniable. The government is taking Lyme disease seriously and has stated clearly that the dismissal and gaslighting of patients must end. The science is advancing. Better diagnostics and therapies are generating the data needed to support widespread adoption.
But perhaps most importantly, collaboration is taking hold. Following the HHS roundtable, I witnessed the Lyme community coalesce around a unified voice. LymeX participants are increasingly sharing insights, strengths, and innovations to accelerate patient-centered solutions.
The tide is turning. At Galaxy Diagnostics, we are honored to help lead that change—and we are committed to translating science into answers patients can trust.