The World Health Organization (WHO)’s Covid-19 Technology Access Pool (C-TAP) and the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) have signed a licencing agreement for Spanish National Research Council’s (CSIC) Covid-19 serological antibody technology. The technology helps identify the presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies developed either in response to a COVID-19 infection or to a vaccine. The agreement is expected to expedite the production and commercialisation of CSIC’s Covid-19 serological test worldwide and marks the first transparent, global, non-exclusive licence for a COVID-19 health tool, and the first test licence signed by MPP and included in the WHO Pool.
South Korean molecular diagnostics firm Seegene has announced it will introduce diagnostic tests in a move to better prepare for a potential increase in Covid-19 and influenza cases during the winter. The tests will be capable of identifying 22 targets including three Covid-19 genes in a single tube. This was announced alongside Seegene’s results for the third quarter of this year. The company reported sales revenue of KRW305.3bn ($260m) in the three-month period to 30 September 2021. The figure represents a 1% increase on a QoQ basis.
Vivera has introduced an AI software solution called LabPort to streamline the Covid-19 diagnostic testing process. The solution was created to enable immediate results reporting for diagnostic testing even in high-volume, field-based testing environments. It was first deployed in July 2021 and has been used to manage the testing process for more than 60,000 EUA-authorised rapid antigen and lab-based RT-PCR tests for major events.
