Beckman Coulter has been awarded a grant to develop quality assurance and quality control materials to be used to verify the accuracy of a planned point-of-care human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) test for resource-poor countries. The grant was awarded by Imperial College LondonÆs CD4 Initiative, which is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
The proposed test will involve a fingerprick sample and a testing mechanism that permits the visual indication of results, similar to that of current pregnancy tests. The new self-contained HIV/AIDS test must be easy-to-use and, more importantly, it must be affordable.
“It is an honour for our parent company to receive this grant and to have the chance to share what we have with those who need it most,” explained Jag Grewal, marketing manager for northern Europe.