Biolidics to launch Covid-19 rapid test kit in April

CANCER-DIAGNOSTICS company Biolidics on Monday announced that it has launched a rapid test kit for Covid-19, which is expected to be available by end April.

Biolidics said its novel coronavirus test can detect Covid-19 using serum, plasma or whole blood samples with an accuracy of more than 95 per cent in 10 minutes, and has received provisional authorisation from Singapore's Health Sciences Authority for use here.

Biolidics declined to reveal the cost of the test kits, but noted that it would be "more affordable than what is in the market".

Currently, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing is used to confirm patients with Covid-19. The swab test usually requires laboratory specialists and dedicated medical testing equipment, and the entire process requires at least three hours. Accuracy levels stand at 99 per cent.

Biolidics' rapid test kit will allow for more effective and efficient decentralised screening among suspected patients, it said, adding that this makes it suitable for screening of suspected patients during border entry, or in potential Covid-19 clusters.

Its interim chief executive Leong Man Chun said in a statement on Monday that the test kit will also allow for point-of-care testing for a larger pool of clusters.

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"With faster and accurate results, it can guide treatment decisions and further enhance public-safety measures," he said.

The company is still working closely with partner Clearbridge Health to obtain approval from health authorities in Asia - particularly in Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and Hong Kong - for the use of this rapid test kit, it said in a statement.

Other kits on the market include the VereCoV detection kit by Veredus Labs, a diagnostic test developed by scientists at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star), another by Acumen Research Laboratories that can analyse at least 24 patient samples at a time, and a serological test developed by researchers at the Duke-NUS Medical School that can establish links between coronavirus patients.