Beverly Company's Product Used To Detect Coronavirus

BEVERLY, MA — Beverly-based LexaGene Holdings Inc. says is genetic analyzer can be used to detect the deadly cornonavirus on-site. Traditional testing requires samples to be taken from patients suspected of having the virus to laboratories for testing. The company said adoption of the product could help prevent "a pandemic."

"LexaGene’s technology is ideally suited to identify novel pathogens such as coronavirus. Our genetic analyzer can quickly detect new pathogens in just one hour, on-site," LexaGene CEO and Founder Dr. Jack Regan said in a statement. :Currently, the traditional process requires that samples from sick individuals must be transported to laboratories for manual processing. This is extremely inefficient and introduces a significant time-delay that can have severe consequences for disease spread. Today’s coronavirus outbreak highlights why LexaGene’s technology is needed so desperately."

Regan said the company is also working to make a product that would specifically test for Coronavirus. Currently, no technology exists that allows for locations like airports and healthcare facilities to readily start screening for a new threat within days of an outbreak being identified.

"Developing a new diagnostic test to detect this coronavirus is important and has already been done by numerous groups," Regan said. "The challenge is bringing these manually performed tests out of the specialized reference laboratories that can take days to return results and instead to the points-of-need, which are the clinics, hospitals, and airports where answers are needed in one hour or less....LexaGene is addressing this urgent problem and has developed the first ever, easy-to-use, open-access diagnostic analyzer that is designed to help control the spread of deadly outbreaks such as this 2019 coronavirus."

More than 7,000 cases of 2019-nCoV novel coronavirus have been identified in 15 countries — including five confirmed cases in the United States. Hundreds of other people with symptoms are being tested.