eSense making progress on revolutionary hand sanitiser product

Under new leadership, eSense-Lab (ASX:ESE) is looking to hit the ground running once the plant technology company returns to the ASX – hopefully shortly.

The company recently announced encouraging results from independent laboratory tests on a proprietary terpene profile that eSense is hoping to use to create a line of revolutionary hand sanitation products – disinfectants that are low in ethanol, which is harsh on the skin, while effective against bacteria and viruses.

The Central Virology Lab in Sheba Medical Center found that the unique terpene blend was as effective as 70 per cent ethanol (the Gold Standard in sanister for hands and surfaces) in neutralising a coronavirus that’s an accepted surrogate for SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

That’s great news for the company, says eSense global chief executive Yoav Elishoov, who joined the company in December.

Sheba Medical Center is the biggest hospital in Israel, and its virology lab is affiliated with the country’s Ministry of Health, Elishoov told Stockhead.

While the company’s lab is very well equipped and on a high level, these tests by independent, unbiased experts give eSense’s terpene blend more credibility.

“We want to bring these solutions to the public and also to the professionals in hospitals and clinics,” Elishoov said.

eSense is now focusing on determining the right partner to work with to commercialise the terpene blends, TRP-ENV.

“We are very attractive now, a lot of companies are coming to us to ask for cooperation,” Elishoov says.

He can’t disclose which companies at this point, but eSense is already working with one company, BetterAir, which sells air and surface sanitising technology.

Commercialising a low-ethanol sanitiser product that is proven effective against germs and viruses could result in huge sales, particularly given the heightened demand from the pandemic.

“The gold standard of the sanitiser is 70 per cent alcohol, but in some cases the alcohol preparations are damaging the skin,” Elishoov says.

That’s particularly true for doctors or nurses who have to wash their hands dozens of times each day and might end up with itching or burning hands.

“The best thing would be to bring something without alcohol that is doing the job, or reducing the level of alcohol to a level that the skin can tolerate,” he says.

Suspension may end soon

For now, unfortunately, ASX investors who want to buy shares in this intriguing Israeli company are out of luck. eSense securities have been suspended since July, over issues about its board composition.

But Elishoov believes that the company is in the “final stages” of smoothing things over with the ASX and that the suspension may lift within weeks.

He also promises that more announcements as eSense works to develop its exciting plant-based disinfectant technology.

“We continue to commercialise things and I hope soon we can expose the things that we will bring to market. And we want to go fast to market, as fast as possible.”

This article was developed in collaboration with eSense-Lab, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.