Novacyt (EURONEXT GROWTH: ALNOV; AIM: NCYT), an international specialist in clinical diagnostics, announces the launch of the Company’s first fully lyophilised (freeze-dried), direct-to-PCR assays.
This new class of PROmate assay enables shipping and transportation at ambient temperatures to remote regions or in areas without a centralised cold storage supply chain, providing an extended global reach for Novacyt’s PCR portfolio.
The first two lyophilised, direct-to-PCR assays to be launched are PROmate® COVID-19 (q32) 2G Dry and PROmate® COVID-19 (q16) 2G Lite Dry, further expanding Novacyt’s COVID-19 detection portfolio and meeting customer distribution requirements for assays which can be deployed more easily in remote or developing regions.
These new assays complement Novacyt’s COVID-19 variant detection portfolio, with a broader portfolio of lyophilised direct-to-PCR assays in development for the detection of other infectious diseases.
Both PROmate® COVID-19 (q32) 2G Dry and PROmate® COVID-19 (q16) 2G Lite Dry are based on the PROmate® COVID-19 direct-to-PCR chemistry, and target the ORF1ab gene and the nsp16 gene, a non-structural protein of SARS-CoV-2. They are designed to function as a total workflow solution PCR amplification and analysis, with PROmate® COVID-19 (q32) 2G Dry configured for use on the Company’s q32 instrument, and PROmate® COVID-19 (q16) 2G Lite Dry configured for use on the Company’s q16 instrument.
David Allmond, Chief Executive Officer of Novacyt, commented:
“Developing these lyophilised, or freeze-dried, direct-to-PCR assays was highlighted as a key target in the strategy set out at our full year results and therefore are an indication of our continued delivery in this regard. Through the development of our portfolio, and the delivery of this new assay type, we are able to ensure that more of Novacyt’s products are available across an even broader geographic area, and that we remain at the forefront in our ability to act as a global first responder. We continue to monitor customer need and use our bioinformatics surveillance capabilities as we look to add further lyophilised PROmate® assays to our portfolio.”
