Novacyt shares soar as it launches test for Wuhan coronavirus

Clinical diagnostics company Novacyt announced on Friday that its molecular diagnostics division Primerdesign has launched a new molecular test for novel coronavirus, or ‘2019-nCoV’.

That strain of the virus is responsible for the current global outbreak, which is believed to have originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

The AIM-traded firm had announced on 28 January that the research use only test had been developed as a direct response to the outbreak.

It said the Primerdesign coronavirus test had the ability to detect only the 2019 strain of the virus, which it believed differentiated it from other current tests which were said to be “less specific” and could also react to other related species, giving rise to a false diagnosis.

The Primerdesign test was also stable at ambient temperatures, which eliminated the need for cold chain shipping in tropical climates, and thus improved the efficiency of the test and reduced transport costs.

Novacyt said the test had been designed to run on multiple molecular testing platforms, including Primerdesign's own ‘genesig q16’ and ‘q32’ instrument, and so could be used in large and small laboratories, as well as remotely where necessary.

The test could generate a result in less than two hours, the board said, meaning that all samples could be screened quickly, which could help stop the unnecessary spread of the virus.

“Over the last few days, we have seen significant early demand for our genesig 2019-nCoV test from over 10 countries,” said chief executive officer Graham Mullis.

“We believe our assay is the first European test to be made available and will be introduced this weekend at the Medlab Expo in the Middle East.

“Our rapid response to this latest virus outbreak is a testament to our core competency of in-vitro diagnostic design, development, manufacturing and commercialisation.”

At 1533 GMT, shares in Novacyt were up 75.6% at 35.12p.