Non-exclusive collaboration aims to accelerate adoption and ease of use in processing single-tube sample collection version of the market-leading modern blood test for latent TB detection
Männedorf, Switzerland, and Germantown, Maryland, Hilden, Germany, March 8, 2019 - The Tecan Group (SIX Swiss Exchange: TECN) and QIAGEN N.V. (NYSE: QGEN; Frankfurt Prime Standard: QIA), a leading global provider of Sample to Insight solutions for Molecular Diagnostics and Life Sciences, announced today a collaboration to improve the processing of QIAGEN's QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus (QFT-Plus) diagnostic test through the utilization of Tecan's Fluent Laboratory Automation workstation for the aliquoting of samples for the optional Lithium Heparin single-tube workflow. The Fluent instruments will be supplied directly to laboratories through Tecan's Life Sciences Business.
QIAGEN's fourth-generation QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus is the modern gold standard for latent tuberculosis (TB) detection based on world leading interferon gamma release assay (IGRA) technology.
QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus offers customers the most flexible workflow among latent TB screening tests, including a single-tube option that enables efficient screening in large-scale programs by collecting blood samples at patient sites and transporting them to labs for processing up to 53 hours after venipuncture.
The two parties are working together to optimize a solution that standardizes and automates the manual steps in liquid handling for the aliquoting of samples. Customers will be able to leverage the high-performance Fluent automation system and thereby achieve the goal of significantly reducing hands-on time, providing greater ease of use and ensure consistency in pre-analytic methods and thereby reducing processing errors and variability between runs. Front-end automation solutions also offer laboratories efficient automation of single tube collection for QuantiFERON, and thereby create efficiency in the lab and improve the patient blood collection experience.
"We are pleased to collaborate with Tecan, a proven leader with a track record of providing best-in-class liquid handling technology solutions, to further improve the automation of the pre-analytic manual steps leading to our QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus test for customers," said Thierry Bernard, Senior Vice President, Head of the Molecular Diagnostics Business Area at QIAGEN N.V. "This automated workflow, which has potential to be rolled out globally, should significantly improve laboratories' economics and ease of use for the QuantiFERON-TB technology, especially in clinical markets that increasingly rely on the single-tube collection version of the test."
Dr. Klaus Lun, Executive Vice President and Head of the Life Sciences Business division at Tecan added, "Our vision at Tecan is to empower every laboratory, every day, around the world and we are delighted to collaborate with QIAGEN, a global leader in the important area of modern latent TB detection, to help even more labs to increase productivity and reduce processing errors through automation of tedious manual steps."
About Tecan
Disclaimer: the Fluent Laboratory Automation configurations referenced in this press release have not been registered or listed with the FDA, nor are they CE-IVD labelled. Availability is pending completion of development activities and any required regulatory submissions.
Tecan (www.tecan.com) is a leading global provider of laboratory instruments and solutions in biopharmaceuticals, forensics and clinical diagnostics. The company specializes in the development, production and distribution of automated workflow solutions for laboratories in the life sciences sector. Its clients include pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, university research departments, forensic and diagnostic laboratories. As an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), Tecan is also a leader in developing and manufacturing OEM instruments and components that are then distributed by partner companies. Founded in Switzerland in 1980, the company has manufacturing, research and development sites in both Europe and North America and maintains a sales and service network in 52 countries. In 2017, Tecan generated sales of CHF 548 million (USD 560 million; EUR 494 million). Registered shares of Tecan Group are traded on the SIX Swiss Exchange (TECN; ISIN CH0012100191).
About QIAGEN
QIAGEN N.V., a Netherlands-based holding company, is the leading global provider of Sample to Insight solutions that enable customers to gain valuable molecular insights from samples containing the building blocks of life. Our sample technologies isolate and process DNA, RNA and proteins from blood, tissue and other materials. Assay technologies make these biomolecules visible and ready for analysis. Bioinformatics software and knowledge bases interpret data to report relevant, actionable insights. Automation solutions tie these together in seamless and cost-effective workflows. QIAGEN provides solutions to more than 500,000 customers around the world in Molecular Diagnostics (human healthcare), Applied Testing (primarily forensics), Pharma (pharma and biotech companies) and Academia (life sciences research).
As of December 31, 2018, QIAGEN employed approximately 5,000 people in over 35 locations worldwide. Further information can be found at http://www.qiagen.com.
Contacts:
Tecan Group
Martin Brändle
Vice President, Communications & Investor Relations
Tel. +41
QIAGEN
Investor Relations Public Relations
John Gilardi +49 2103 29 11711 Dr. Thomas Theuringer +49 2103 29 11826
Dr. Sarah Fakih +49 2103 29 11457 Robert Reitze +49 2103 29 11676
e-mail: ir@QIAGEN.come-mail: pr@QIAGEN.com
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