Avacta Group PLC (LON:AVCT) is teaming up with the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine to clinically validate the rapid saliva-based coronavirus antigen test it is developing with a firm called Cytiva.
Scientists will assess the performance of a diagnostic test using real patient samples.
"I am delighted to have established this collaboration with the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine,” said Avacta chief executive, Dr Alastair Smith.
“It is an important partnership which provides Avacta with access to patient samples both in the UK and abroad, where the incidence of the disease is currently much higher, to ensure prompt access to a sufficient number of samples for clinical validation.”
Avacta is a pioneer of Affimer technology - proteins that bind to target molecules and perform a similar role to antibodies.
Affimers can be used to detect targets and can easily be formatted for a wide range of applications and can be simply and cost-effectively manufactured.