This technology was originally designed for NASA to verify maximal pre-launch disinfection of spacecraft for Mars exploration and other interplanetary missions. The most environmentally resilient microbes known are spore-forming organisms in the bacillus and clostridium families. If such an organism can be shown to have survived the standard sterilization methods on the surface of robots designed for landing on Mars, more stringent anti-microbial methods may become necessary. This licensed technology provides a method of rapidly detecting the presence of live endospores within 4 minutes; which is much improved from the standard laboratory testing time of 72 hours. The method works by detecting a specific chemical marker contained in the outer shell of endospores. With today’s threat of weaponized biological agents, this technological advancement is particularly relevant for the rapid detection of anthrax. This method also has potential for a new solution for the prevention of notorious hospital acquired infections such as clostridium difficile, a problem that adds billions of dollars to the cost of healthcare today.

ASM has been formed to create commercially viable products based on these licenses and others that may be granted to the company by various government and educational research institutions. ASM’s first products, in the development stage, will be innovative biochemical monitoring devices and consumable test strips for the rapid detection of endospores on surfaces and in liquids.

ASM’s mission is to fill the market void that exists today for products that provide rapid and accurate endospore detection. As a result, it aims to become the world’s leading provider of high quality, reliable, cost effective surface and water spore detection products.