South Korean biopharmaceutical firm Celltrion has received a contract valued at up to $626m from the US Defense Logistics Agency for the supply of its DiaTrust COVID-19 Ag Rapid Test. This 12-month supply contract makes Celltrion the first Korean mass supplier of rapid tests for Covid-19. Celltrion USA will supply the tests on a weekly basis to nearly 25,000 US locations to support military bases, long-term care facilities, community testing sites and other designated sites. The test, which provides results in 15 minutes, holds Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Physicians in California, US have been using lung scans from 4DMedical to gain better insights into the effects of long Covid, report Reuters. The lung scans use existing hospital equipment to identify high and low lung ventilation in long Covid patients. The company uses a video sequence of approximately 20 seconds of the patient breathing naturally, which facilitates mathematical calculation of the motion and the airflow in and out of the lungs. The technology also uses algorithms and mathematical models to convert sequences of X-ray images into quantitative data. The scans reveal evidence of lung damage not seen on a CT scan or X-ray, according to 4DMedical chief clinical adviser Dr Ray Casciari.
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OraSure Technologies is set to receive up to $13.6m funding from the US Biomedical Advanced Research Development Authority (BARDA) to support the company in obtaining 510(k) clearance and Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) waiver for its InteliSwab COVID-19 rapid test. The test has received EUA for point-of-care, prescription, home and over-the-counter settings in the US. It uses an integrated swab for self-collection of a sample from the lower nostrils and delivers results in less than 30 minutes without the need for external instruments, a smartphone or laboratory analysis.
