Avacta's cash call to investors

The York-based company, which was spun out of the University of Leeds, develops technology to speed up and reduce the cost of diagnosis.

The group launched its flagship Optim diagnostics device in April last year, but said orders have been slower than hoped for.

Optim allows drug developers to gain vital information about compounds using tiny samples, more cheaply and quickly than other methods.

The device, which costs between 50,000 and 100,000, can do tests simultaneously – the work of three or four instruments – in just 75 to 90 minutes. Rival processes can take about 18 days.

Avacta has sold just four of the units, with the latest going to a global bio-manufacturing systems supplier, but is confident of more.

"Whilst the order intake in the current difficult economic climate has been slower than hoped for, the pipeline of validated enquiries is very encouraging and the company is confident of seeing this strong interest in the product convert to accelerating sales over the coming months," said the group.

Avacta hopes soon to launch its Midas product, aimed at the animal healthcare market. It will sell for "low thousands" of pounds, and Avacta hopes to earn recurring revenues from consumable test cartridges.

Midas will test blood and serum samples, initially for an unspecified dog disease, but later diversifying to diagnose diseases in cats and horses.

Beyond that, Avacta hopes to expand into endocrine, thyroid and viral infection tests, with the ultimate aim for the device being human blood tests.

Avacta said the funds will be used to support the rollout of Optim and Midas by improving manufacturing and boosting its sales teams.

Avacta also raised up to 2m through a placing in October.