South Korea headquartered Seegene Inc. has introduced its new deployable container laboratory Mobile Station at the Medlab Middle East 2021, which took place in Dubai from June 21 to 24.

Seegene’s Mobile Station is a laboratory-on-wheels facility designed to deploy PCR testing solutions to anywhere community-based testing is needed. While many countries around the world are planning to re-open their borders, schools, and public-use facilities, Mobile Station will allow for mass PCR testing in such locations, and can be mobilized anytime, allowing more people to utilize molecular diagnostics when needed.

PCR testing has been normally conducted only at fixed space due to concerns of cross-contamination. However, Seegene has already minimized the overall risks of aerosol contamination posed in PCR process in Mobile Station by installing a Class 2 (A2) Bio-Safety Cabinet and negative pressure room.

From sample collection to automated interpretation of results, it offers streamlined and automated workflow backed by the company’s all-in-one platform thereby allowing equitable access to health care for the public. Seegene’s all-in-one platform, when fully utilized, can conduct up to 7,500 tests per day with a turnaround time of 3.5 hours.

Seegene’s concept of the mobile laboratory is expected to play a role in stopping the current pandemic since Seegene offers an effective PCR testing solution with its exclusive multiplex assays including Allplex SARS-CoV-2 Master Assay, a kit that simultaneously detects COVID-19 and multiple virus variants and Allplex SARS-CoV-2/FluA/FluB/RSV Assay, a kit differentiates 8 target genes including Flu A, Flu B, RSV A/B and three different target genes of COVID-19. Mobile Station is also fully compatible with Seegene’s more than 150 multiplex assay menus including tests for respiratory infectious pathogens, HPV, STI, and GI.

Seegene also introduced Combo Swab, a self-administrable sample collection device. In comparison to nasopharyngeal swab, typically used in sampling for COVID-19 PCR testing, in which healthcare providers collect samples by inserting a swab deep inside nostrils, Combo Swab allows individuals to simply collect samples with two individual swabs through swirling around their nasal and oral cavity by two individual swabs without any discomfort. In addition, Combo Swab with dual sample collection showed the same accuracy compared to nasopharyngeal swab. Self-sample collection availability of Combo Swab along with provisional space scalability of Mobile Station enables mass testing to proceed at a quicker pace and more efficient manner than the conventional process. 

Seegene Middle East, the company’s Middle East subsidiary, has signed an MOU with Group 42 healthcare, an Information Technology and healthcare company to promote the Mobile Station in the Middle East and North Africa. 

Min-cheol Lee, Seegene’s Chief Technology Officer says, “As COVID-19 is likely to become endemic, the Mobile Station will play a key role in not only detecting COVID-19, but also closely monitoring other new viruses that can threaten our daily lives in the future. Seegene’s multiple virus variant detection kits can detect the new strains of virus and prevent them from turning into an additional outbreak of subsequent pandemic waves.”