ABL Diagnostics, the French molecular biology company listed on the Euronext Paris (Euronext: ABLD – ISIN: FR001400AHX6) has released a revolutionary genotyping kit, DeepChek® Assay HIV-1 Full PR/RT/INT Drug Resistance, in a bid to strengthen its expertise and leadership in HIV drug resistance testing.
The new kit targets the protease, reverse transcriptase and integrase genes in a single PCR reaction, which are key targets for assessing the level of resistance of the drugs currently prescribed for treating patients infected by the HIV-1 virus.
Analytical outcomes performed using both RNA and proviral DNA samples achieve excellent outcomes in terms of specificity and sensitivity (with a Limit of Detection (LOD) below 1000 copies/mL). Currently available for Research Use Only (RUO), the assay is being considered for IVDR marking.
The design of the assay provides laboratory efficiency in terms of turnaround time and hands-on time. It has been tested with different combinations of next generation sequencing (NGS) systems and the DeepChek®-HIV Software, allowing ABL Diagnostics to offer an end-to-end solution to a variety of microbiology labs.
Head of Research and Development, Dr. Sofiane Mohamed, commented: “We had to face substantial technical challenges which we were able to overcome with the entire team’s focus and dedication, and the support from the French State and “Region Grand Est” through the R&D Grant PIA4. We keep innovating by constantly adapting our strategy to fulfil the natural evolutions of the virus, to overcome the related scientific challenges, and to meet regulatory requirements.”
Head of Diagnostics, Dimitri Gonzalez, added: “The release of this disruptive assay strengthens the leading position of the company in the field of Microbiology genotyping through sequencing. Our DeepChek® technology is an open system allowing to pool different microbiology applications in the same sequencing run.”
ABL Diagnostics offers molecular biology assays and end-to-end solutions intended to be used for molecular detection by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) – UltraGene® and for genotyping through DNA sequencing – DeepChek®. The company’s current portfolio covers one of the largest range of microbiology applications, with a primary focus on HIV, SARS-CoV-2, Tuberculosis, viral hepatitis B and C, 16s/18s RNA for taxonomy and microbiome analyses and other viral and bacterial targets.
The products are commercialised on a worldwide basis through its own sales team and through a network of exclusive distributors active on all continents. ABL Diagnostics’ clients are academic clinical pathology labs, private reference labs and researchers.
