BATM Advanced Communications Ltd (LON:BVC; TASE:BVC) has launched a new self-collected saliva-based COVID test that significantly improves the sample collection process and turnaround time while maintaining diagnostic accuracy.
It said it has begun taking orders for the RT-PCR kit, which is part of subsidiary Adaltis' MOLgen product range, and expects to begin deliveries next month.
“Despite the excellent progress that has been made with vaccinations, we believe that COVID-19 will be with us for quite some time and so solutions such as our new saliva test will be invaluable for providing the ongoing testing required in places where people gather such as schools and leisure venues,” said the company’s chief executive, Dr Zvi Marom.
“We have already received particular interest from cruise lines and professional sports teams who see this test as enabling a safe return to a more normal life. We look forward to commence shipping this product shortly and to delivering further innovative diagnostic solutions for COVID-19 and other infectious diseases in the near future."
Samples are collected by chewing a cotton ball for 30 seconds and then spitting it (or spitting directly) into a small plastic collector tube.
It uses the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, or RT-PCR technique to check for COVID. This approach is recognised to be more accurate than lateral flow tests, which sometimes return false results.