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New Zealand’s Health Research Council and Health Ministry are funding research on integrating two cutting-edge, mobile, genetic analysis technologies for use in the fight against the spread of COVID-19.

The first tool is from New Zealand-based Ubiquitome. It is called Liberty 16 and is a handheld, battery-powered, real-time polymerase chain reaction (real-time PCR) device that can quickly test and relay sample data via an iPhone app.

Liberty16 is already commercial with devices sold to research and clinical labs in Japan, US, Canada, United Kingdom and Germany. Protocols are now being worked up for COVID-19 testing and it is being trialled in two labs in New Zealand, as well as labs in the United Kingdom and United States.

The research also responds to the shortage of reagents that is currently constraining many diagnostic facilities by validating minimal-extraction and extraction-less approaches for RNA sample preparation. These range from rapid buffer-based extraction protocols to simple heat-treatments that have shown promise in recent overseas studies.  Use of such minimal extraction protocols also further reduces the time required to complete a test. The option of using different sample preparation and reagent options for testing is where open-system platforms, such as the Liberty16, are particularly valuable as the supply chain immediately becomes much broader.

The second tool is the well-known Oxford Nanopore Flongle.

Pairing the Liberty and the Oxford Nanopore Flongle is an integral part of the research being done by Massey University senior genetics lecturers Dr Olin Silander and Dr Nikki Freed. In their application for NZ$165,000 grant, the researchers say they aim to be able to enable a single person to screen more than 500 samples per day and obtain up to 24 whole genome sequences per day.

Dr Susan Turner, chief scientific officer for Ubiquitome, says there is little that can be done about the biology of the virus, which means many people are infectious before, or in the absence of symptoms.

“What we can do is narrow the time between infection, diagnosis and source and contact tracing,” she says. “To achieve this we need technologies that enable widespread access to affordable, line-of-sight diagnostic testing, rapid turnaround of results, and efficient methods to track and trace viral transmission.

“Bringing the Oxford Nanopore’s viral genotyping Flongle platform alongside the Liberty16 is expected to increase the efficiency of source tracking and contact tracing.”

Ubiquitome’s potential to deliver fast test results for Covid-19 outside of large laboratories has already attracted global inquires. The United Kingdom’s top Covid-19 research team revealed in March was considering using Liberty 16 to test front line medical staff.

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For information:

Dr Susan Turner

Chief Scientific Officer Ubiquitome

Tel: 021 353 317 

Email: s.turner@ubiquitomebio.com