$PSID Probst delivered a brief presentation and answered questions yesterday as a member of a BioWatch panel discussion, officially titled “Novel Technologies to Expand Capabilities,” about current and future advancements in pathogen detection systems, hosted by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NAS).
Panel participants shared several insights on recent advancements in the pathogen detection field that had recently come to market or were on the near horizon. Case in point, Probst pointed to ExcitePCR’s FireflyDX technology platform, which utilizes a patented microfluidic-based cartridge that incorporates on-board sample preparation as part of ExcitePCR’s polymerase chain reaction-based pathogen detection systems.
“We’ve already shown in-lab comparability to the ABI 7500 with our FireflyDX for pathogens ranging from MRSA to swine flu, as well as when detecting other bio-threats like anthrax or when looking for the presence of genetically modified foods (GMOs),” Probst said. “The difference we believe the FireflyDX products will deliver is the ability to incorporate sample prep within the entire PCR process. This allows caregivers, first responders, animal health workers and others to have extremely accurate results within 30 minutes or less from the moment of sample capture to PCR-derived results.” {NOTE: Thermo Fisher Scientific’s ABI 7500 is viewed by most industry professionals as the “gold standard” for benchtop-based PCR testing.}
For example, Probst explained, ExcitePCR’s FireflyDX technologies have been evaluated and/or tested for pathogen detection by a number of client organizations and partners, including
• As a “Performer” with ENSCO and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology SenseNet Program, with the FireflyDX selected as the “designated SenseNet confirmation detector,” a program that just completed Phase II A;
• GenArraytion which demonstrated that the breadboard prototype of the FireflyDX accurately and rapidly detected the Zika virus using GenArraytion’s PCR assay for Zika;
• A Pilot Study with seqID that utilized the FireflyDX to accurately test for the presence of GMO corn and soybean at concentrations ranging from 10.0 to 0.0 percent, a pilot study that generated comparable results to those produced by the ABI 7500, test results shared via “Invited Presentations” to the
Analytic Excellence through Industry Collaboration (AEIC)
Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA)
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA); and by an
• Independent third-party laboratory that conducted a comprehensive on-site review and evaluation of the FireflyDX’s technologies, capabilities and accuracy, which concluded that ExcitePCR’s pathogen detection system performed comparably to the ABI 7500.
Last month ExcitePCR announced a FireflyDX family of portable pathogen detection systems, led by its FireflyDX-Portable™, a rechargeable, bookbag-sized, realtime pathogen detection system the company expects will be commercially available in summer 2018. In addition, ExcitePCR also announced that it plans commercial availability in 2019 for a smaller pathogen detection device that can be held in a single hand, a system the company has named the FireflyDX-Handheld™.
