COVID19 Diagnosis: Toscana Life Sciences and Diesse Diagnostica Senese announce strategic alliance for the development of a new kit

Siena, 31st July 2020 - A collaboration agreement for the development of a diagnostic kit, based on a saliva sample, for the research of the SARS-CoV-2 antigen is a natural evolution of the research activity on human monoclonal antibodies performed in the past months by the Monoclonal Antibody Discovery (MAD) Lab of TLS Foundation. The collaboration which has just been signed between Diesse and Toscana Life Sciences Foundation formalizes their increasing relationship on scientific research and industrial production.

The diagnostic kit will be developed in the coming months by Diesse, an IVD (In Vitro Diagnostics) company which is a world leader in the viral serology sector. The development will begin from the broad range of monoclonal antibodies which have been extracted and selected by the TLS research group, coordinated by Dr. Rappuoli, from COVID-19 convalescent or healed patients.

“The Sienese technological district is once again representing a global excellence in the vaccines industry and, more broadly, in the complex world of immunologic response to viruses. This constant interpenetration between research and industry represents a priceless value that our company is able to materialise into high-tech diagnostic solutions for the fight against COVID-19, especially now that, with the fall coming, we are about to face a delicate phase of the fight to the pandemic” – declares Massimiliano Boggetti, Managing Director of Diesse Diagnostica Senese.

This is an agreement mainly aiming at enhancing and improving the diagnosis of the new coronavirus infection, by reducing the risk of false negatives, thanks to a kit designed on Diesse Chorus solutions, which represent flexibility and simplicity of testing, as well as a complete traceability of results, thanks to the Identisystem technology.

“Human monoclonal antibodies are giving promising results as a feasible therapy for SARS-CoV-2 while playing a fundamental role in diagnostics too – states Andrea Paolini, Managing Director of Toscana Life Sciences – We very much welcome this agreement with Diesse for the development of an innovative diagnostic kit, considering it as a way for further valorising the work done in the previous months by our research group, for offering possible responses to this public health emergency and, last but not least, for acknowledging and reinforcing the strategic role TLS plays as an aggregator of the system and facilitator of technology transfer”.

The strategic alliance which is today based on sharing scientific and industrial knowledge could eventually pave the way to a shared commercial strategy.
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