A new rapid bovine TB test that is 98 percent accurate and able to identify positive samples on-site within 10 to 15 minutes is due to be introduced next year.
Elsh diagnostics company iOmics claims its new test for bovine TB will accurately detect the presence of the disease on-site without the need for laboratory equipment. Dubbed bTBscreen+, the test is based on lateral flow technology, allowing anyone in herd management and the supply chain to use it for frequent and routine screening for the disease.
The new tests were made possible by the discovery of biomarkers by scientists working at the University of Aberystwyth’s Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS).
The project has been backed with around £2million and iOmics is now seeking an additional £0.5million to launch the product, which is expected to cost £40-50 (€47-59) over the next nine to 12 months 12 months,
sensitivity
In conversation with the Independent Farming, Ian Bond, co-founder of iOmics, said: “These new biomarkers have improved the sensitivity and specificity of our test. It is 98 percent accurate and identifies TB in an animal in less than 15 minutes.
“iOmics owns and will license the intellectual property derived from research at Aberystwyth University to lateral flow manufacturers. We expect each test to retail for around £40-50.”
The comparative intradermal tuberculin test (CITT) is currently used in Ireland. In a 2021 report, Ireland’s TB Scientific Working Group said that lateral flow assay (LFA) devices offer many advantages in that they are easy to perform, stable at room temperature and not logistically demanding.
LFAs are not currently approved by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) or the EU. Previous TB-LFAs were designed to detect late infection.
“Aberystwyth University has done a great deal of work with this agricultural test and we are pleased with its performance,” said Mr Bond. “I am very confident that our test will be approved by the relevant authorities.”
iOmics claims that the test can also be used in other animals at risk of bTB infection, such as B. badgers and deer.
https://www.independent.ie/business/farming/news/farming-news/new-bovine-tb-test-to-identify-infection-within-10-15-minutes-41681754.html New bovine TB test to detect infection within 10-15 minutes
