3M Accused of Sabotage

The race to the finish line is extremely competitive in the medical device game. So competitive, in fact, that 3M Co. is under fire for allegedly sabotaging their competition to get there first.

Britain-based Porton Group has accused St. Paul, Minn.-based 3M of purposely botching clinical trials of the BacLite, a device which uses a unique florescent light to detect MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus). Porton Group sold the BacLite to 3M in 2006, after achieving 95 percent effectiveness in European clinical trials.

However, trials performed by 3M found that the device was only 50 percent effective.

Attorneys for Porton Group claim that 3M deliberately sabotaged the trial by keeping bacteria below body temperature. They have requested an investigation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and demanded that 3M release internal documents. Porton Group further alleges that 3M engaged in the acts to ensure that its own product, Simplexa, would hit the market first. Simplexa is a more expensive molecular test for the detection of MRSA.

A 3M spokesperson said that BacLite was “not fully developed and ready to market” and “failed to meet its label claims.”

Unfortunately for both companies, Microphage Inc. beat them to the punch. The FDA granted approval for the Longmont, Colo.-based company’s Key Path test earlier this month.