Alamar Biosciences, a platform company focused on transforming the field of proteomics to enable the early detection of cancer and other diseases, and Mologic, a developer of lateral flow and rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs), announced a collaboration to utilize Alamar’s novel antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 Nucleocapsid (N) protein for Mologic’s future COVID-19 RDTs.
RDTs are a key tool for controlling the spread of COVID-19, including in low resource settings. Mologic has already launched COVID-19 antigen tests based on its lateral flow assay technology, utilizing high affinity, paired antibodies specific for the SARS-CoV-2 nucleoprotein antigen.
Second generation tests with even greater sensitivity are now in development leveraging the latest generation of engineered antibodies with ultra-high affinity, discovered through Alamar’s proprietary Attobody platform, together with Mologic’s novel electronic lateral flow immunoassay (eLFIA) technology.
“We are very pleased with the increased sensitivity attainable with Alamar antibodies, especially in view of the speed with which they can be developed,” says Professor Paul Davis, chief scientific officer & co-founder of Mologic. “We look forward to continuing our collaboration to create the road map for unprecedented speed of response to new pandemic threats of whatever origin. Fast-track discovery and deployment of antibodies with the highest possible affinity and specificity will be the central pillar of this new Pandemic Preparedness, very much aligning with Mologic’s mission to better enable humanity to cope with the long-term presence of COVID-19.”
Alamar’s proprietary Attobody platform produces a highly diverse pool of antibodies with single digit picomolar affinity and exquisite specificity. Compared to traditional antibody engineering, the Attobody platform deploys an accelerated antibody design and engineering process to generate novel antibodies without the need for affinity maturation.
“Rapid and highly sensitive COVID-19 detection will remain an essential global health challenge in the coming years, and we must learn from the global COVID-19 experience to ensure a better, robust Pandemic Preparedness. We are excited to continue working with Mologic to meet these needs,” says Yuling Luo, PhD, founder, chairman & CEO of Alamar.
