Test for New Coronavirus

A test for human coronavirus NL63, a newly identified virus related to severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and other coronaviruses, is being developed by Focus Diagnostics, Inc. (Herndon, VA, USA), formerly called Focus Technologies.

The new coronavirus causes severe respiratory disease in children under five and is associated with respiratory disease in adults and the elderly. The virus was first described by Dr. Lia van der Hoek and colleagues at the Academic Medical Center (Amsterdam, The Netherlands) in 2004. Earlier this year, researchers at Yale University (New Haven, CT, USA) indicated a possible association of this virus with Kawasaki disease, the leading cause of acquired heart disease in children, which has never before been shown to have a possible infectious cause. Several laboratories are assessing this association.

The NL63 virus is the subject of a patent application filed by the original discoverers. The rights to the patent have been assigned to Primagen Holdings B.V. (Amsterdam, The Netherlands; www.primagen.com). Focus Diagnostics has announced a license agreement with Primagen for the purpose of developing a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test for the coronavirus. This will allow the infectious disease reference laboratory of Focus Diagnostics in Cypress (CA, USA) to be the first U.S. lab to bring a test to market for this new agent.

"Our charter is to develop new diagnostic tests that help physicians make a diagnosis that leads to better patient management,” observed Charles C. Harwood, Jr., CEO of Focus Diagnostics. The company has a pharmaceutical diagnostics subsidiary, Focus Bio-Inova, in Plaisir (France).




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