US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has awarded Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) to Beckman Coulter’s Access SARS-CoV-2 Immunoglobulin M (IgM) assay. The assay has demonstrated specificity of 99.9% and sensitivity of 98.3%. It is a part of the diagnostic solutions suite developed by Beckman Coulter to help fight the Covid-19 pandemic.

India and Israel have partnered to develop a rapid Covid-19 testing technology that will provide the results within a minute, reports the Times of India. Israeli Ambassador to India Ron Malka has reportedly stated that the test will be available in ‘a matter of days’. Individuals must blow into a tube for the test, following which the results are provided.

Medtronic has donated personal protective equipment (PPE) worth around $1m, to the International Medical Corps to aid its efforts to fight the Covid-19 pandemic in continental US and Puerto Rico. The donation comprises of over 1.1 million surgical masks and 408,000 KN95 respirators which will be provided to over 15 hospitals and health facilities.

Oxford Nanopore Technologies has announced that its LamPORE test to detect the Covid-19 causing SARS-CoV-2 virus, has received the CE-IVD mark. The test is performed on the GridION, which is a desktop device or on MinION Mk1C, which is a palm-sized device. The company is now working to receive regulatory approvals in the US and UAE.