Avacta Group, the developer of Affimer biotherapeutics and reagents, has announced its intention to launch an ELISA laboratory test for the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein to support global research efforts into the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.
Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) are very common research tools used to detect and quantify a target of interest in a wide range of samples. Using the same Affimer reagents incorporated into its rapid coronavirus saliva test being developed with Cytiva, Avacta has developed in-house a high-performance ELISA laboratory test to detect the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Avacta will make the ELISA test available as a kit so that researchers globally can use it in their own laboratories to support research into the coronavirus.
The Affimer-based ELISA test is capable of detecting the coronavirus spike protein in laboratory samples down to very low concentrations. An evaluation of the ELISA carried out with the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine using SARS-CoV-2 virus samples shows that it can detect as little as a few thousand virus infectious units per millilitre of sample. This is typical of the levels found in infectious COVID-19 patients’ saliva, whether they are symptomatic or not. Highly infectious COVID-19 patients can have many thousands or millions of times more spike protein in their saliva than this.
The Affimer-based ELISA test is also highly specific to the SARS-CoV-2 virus with no cross-reactivity against other closely related coronavirus spike proteins. Avacta plans to supply the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein ELISA reagent kit directly and is also in active discussions with potential partners and distributors globally.