Invivo Healthcare
Unpicking the human microbiome
Within the human body, there are as many bacterial cells as there are human cells. When combined with the presence of additional microbes such as archaea, protists, fungi, and viruses, human cells are swiftly outnumbered. This microbial population, known as the human microbiome, has been shown to be important for both short- and long-term human health. Perturbations to the microbiome population have been linked to many issues including increased risk of cardiovascular disease, neurodegenerative disorders, fertility issues, and poor dental health.
Invivo Healthcare have developed a state-of-the-art diagnostics platform to characterise and understand the human microbiome, with the goal of improving human health. By utilising highly sensitive culture independent assays, Invivo Healthcare can generate vast quantities of data to inform individuals of the composition of their microbial population and make them aware of areas of concern.
Accelerating Microbiome Diagnostics with Artificial Intelligence
As Invivo Healthcare grew, the sheer quantity of diagnostic data began to form an operational bottleneck. Manual data operations, including data curation, annotation, and upload to a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS), comprised a large amount of the work performed by their technical team. These operational inefficiencies prevented further scale-up and raised the risk of human error to an unacceptable degree. Without updating their analysis pipeline, these problems would only exacerbate.
By working with STL, Invivo Healthcare chose to explore how artificial intelligence (AI) could improve their data analysis capabilities and workflow efficiency. They required an upgraded analysis system that:
Significantly reduced manual processing activities and process duration.
Reduced opportunities for human error
Integrated into current data management systems
Supported continuous improvement and data integrity
Scaled with new tests, data types, and analytical processes.
Could be expanded to grow and evolve with the company and its systems
STL: innovation, with tangible results.
STL have over 200 years of combined expertise encompassing artificial intelligence, embedded software, engineering, and innovation. By working alongside the scientific team at Invivo Healthcare, STL developed a system that added significant value to their diagnostic offering.
STL applied a structured development process to fully understand Invivo Healthcare’s data pipeline. By understanding the scale of the opportunity, complexity of the data and associated errors, alongside robust requirements capture, regular client progress review meetings and product testing, STL ensured the delivered AI solution met, and exceeded, Invivo Healthcare’s needs.
The delivered AI system led to an immediate step-change for Invivo Healthcare. The AI system integrated seamlessly into Invivo Healthcare’s existing workflows, improving data accuracy, and completely removing the operational bottleneck, reducing the required hands-on time for data analysis to only 20 minutes per week – a greater than 80% improvement in efficiency.
The features and benefits of the STL designed AI include:
Automatic and rapid curation of large datasets, with accuracy and speed exceeding manual intervention, suitable for scale-up.
A direct method of data analysis and upload to the company LIMS.
Improved data integrity and reduced risk of human error.
A system that can continuously improve with iterative training cycles.
Compatibility with existing laboratory systems, in a manufacturer agnostic fashion.
An easy to operate user interface, requiring minimal training.
“Invivo Diagnostics engaged STL to support the automation of its PCR analysis. STL’s AI specialists quickly understood our processes and methodologies and engaged our scientists to design an ML (machine learning) system to automate our analysis. They delivered a POC (proof-of-concept) system swiftly that does exactly what was requested, and now saves us a significant amount of time. We plan to make the system the ‘engine’ of our lab operation with STL’s assistance, and we are currently defining the requirements for the next phase of the development. As well as being technical experts, the STL team are really down to earth and a pleasure to work with.”
Dr Eviatar Natan, (Director of Operations & Strategy, Invivo Diagnostics)
STL supported Invivo Healthcare to evaluate an opportunity for innovation and make a step-change in their operations. Timescales were short but by using a structured development process and working closely with the client, STL provided a system that fully met the clients’ needs
At STL, we work with our clients to evaluate and apply opportunities that provide real business benefits. We aim to augment your skills, de-risking new tasks so you can focus on the core business activities. Drawing from both in-house knowledge as well as an extended network of specialist consultants, STL can avoid the pitfalls associated with bringing high-risk technologies to market and support the needs of our clients.
For more information on how AI can be applied within life sciences, biotechnology, or other sectors, or to find out how STL can support the development of your technology in general, contact Peter Stirling (CEO, pstirling@stl-tech.co.uk).