Enigma Diagnostics to Develop Clinical Diagnostics Platform for UK National Chlamydia Screening...( New DNA-Based Test Produces ...)

New DNA-Based Test Produces Decisive Result Within Minutes

PORTON DOWN, England, November 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Enigma Diagnostics, the life sciences company developing rapid molecular diagnostics and detection systems, announces that it has successfully completed a project commissioned by the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dtsl) to develop a rapid, point-of-care diagnostic system for screening and diagnosis(1) of Chlamydia infections, the most common treatable sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the UK. The project was designed to meet the needs of the UK National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP), part of the National Strategy for Sexual Health and HIV.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20071109/281128 )

Enigma has developed a specific DNA test (assay), reagents and instrumentation capable of rapidly detecting Chlamydia trachomatis DNA from multiple urine and, uniquely, swab samples at the point of care (PoC), i.e. in a clinic or outreach centre. Feasibility of the assay has been proven in the laboratory and the product specifications have been validated with sexual health professionals.

The new system will be based on Enigma's fully-automated diagnostics platform, which uses real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology to detect bacterial target DNA in samples and provides definitive results in a matter of minutes, enabling immediate treatment as necessary. The system will also be very simple to use, requiring minimal training and experience, and importantly will provide 'gold standard' laboratory quality results thereby reducing the need for samples to be sent to a laboratory for analysis. Other point of care diagnostics products for Chlamydia are known to give unreliable results.

John McKinley, Chairman of Enigma Diagnostics, said: "This successfully completed contract with the UK Government demonstrates the
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