Equipment produced by Marlborough medical device manufacturer Hologic has been used to create a molecular analysis to possibly detect the novel coronavirus.
The preclinical molecular assay was developed by investigators at Hannover Medical School in Germany using Hologic’s automated Panther Fusion system. Using the open access nature of the machinery, the investigators were able to adapt two protocols and create a potential test for the coronavirus. The next step will be validating the assay with clinical samples.
Kevin Thornal, president of the diagnostic solutions division at Hologic, said this is the exact flexibility that the Panther System was designed for, allowing laboratories to respond quickly to changing needs.
The preclinical assay developed by the German described online in the Journal of Clinical Virology.
