ZURICH – Swiss pharma giant Roche today announced the launch of a new test to help researchers find coronavirus variants feared to be more harmful or could undermine vaccines.
The new laboratory test is designed to detect mutations of the virus, and monitor their prevalence and potential impact on infection, vaccines and therapies to combat Covid-19, said Roche in a statement.
“Continuous surveillance is essential to public health.”
The appearance of variants has caused much concern in recent months, with those from the United Kingdom, Brazil and South Africa, in particular, widely believed to be more transmissible and possibly more dangerous.
Roche’s new test can be run on its Cobas 6800/8800 machines, which are widely used in research laboratories and hospitals, it said.
The company has been a pioneer in coronavirus testing since the disease first surfaced in China in late 2019 before spreading around the world. – AFP, March 16, 2021
