Enigma Diagnostics Announces a European Commission Award of EUR3 Million to Fund the Development of a Point of Care Platform for the Rapid Diagnosis of Influenza ...( A Fully Automated Portable Solution ...)

A Fully Automated, Portable Solution for In-Clinic and Out-Reach Influenza

Testing

PORTON DOWN, England, October 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Enigma Diagnostics, the life sciences company developing rapid molecular diagnostics and detection systems, announces a EUR3 million award from the European Commission Framework 7 programme to the RANGER consortium. The award will fund the development and validation of a fully automated, low cost system for the rapid diagnosis of influenza infections and subtypes.

The RANGER consortium, which is coordinated by Enigma Diagnostics, comprises leading technology companies including Applied Biosystems, Sagentia, Tico Europe, Bruhn Newtech Group, Bioplastics BV and PERA who will contribute to the development of the instrument and assays. The consortium also includes the Health Protection Agency, the UK's national reference laboratory for influenza diagnostics, and the Queen Sirikit National Institute of Child Health who will evaluate and validate the system.

The system will be based on Enigma's proprietary and fully-automated instrumentation technology, which integrates sample preparation with real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect viral RNA in a full range of clinical samples. The simple-to-use, portable system will provide rapid results direct to medical staff in a near-patient or out-reach environment in both the developed and developing world.

By providing laboratory standard, high specificity and sensitivity PCR results in a decentralised setting, the system will advance the diagnosis of early stage viral infections and the surveillance of disease outbreaks.

Enigma is also separately developing real-time PCR-based diagnostics systems targeting chlamydia, gonorrhoea and other sexually transmitted infections.

John McKinley, Chairman of Enigma Diagnostics, said: "The award of this grant and the strength of our consortium partners is a great endorsement
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