Alveo Technologies, Inc., announced a partnership with NYtor B.V to create a rapid, accurate, pen-side test that will detect the dominant flu strains in swine, including H1N1, H1N2 and H3N2.
“In the U.S., pork industry management systems regularly move pigs through different stages of production such as the nursery, growers and finishers,” the companies said in a release. “Transitions between stages need to occur on time to make room for the next group of animals entering the next stage, and knowing whether animals are infected prior to transport is critical for good health management. If a group of infected pigs are brought into a new facility, the virus can spread rapidly through susceptible swine.”
The economic consequences of flu are severe. Infected pigs in the growing phase will see a production loss that will border on 12% to 15%, and if these animals are coinfected with other diseases like porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus, then losses can approach 30% to 40%, the release said.
PCR tests provide results in 24-to-48 hours, but wait times of up to five days are more common, the companies said, because samples must be shipped to a laboratory for processing. This makes it challenging to know the flu status of pigs prior to transport.
The Alveo platform, including its mobile app, Alveo Sense, is a rapid, handheld, reusable, and rugged multiplexed molecular diagnostic device, the release said. It pairs advanced molecular assays with cloud-enabled data analytics to provide highly accurate and sensitive real-time detection, analysis, and diagnosis of diseases, pathogens and contaminants. The platform employs Alveo’s globally patented direct-electrical sensing approach to pathogen identification, leveraging loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP). This portable molecular lab can deliver rapid test results at the point-of-need or in the field. Alveo’s platform also provides geotagged results that can be uploaded to the cloud to give a real-time view of national outbreaks and inform response.
NYtor is developing swine flu assays for the Alveo platform that will enable operations to monitor the flu status of their animals in real time with rapid, highly accurate pen-side tests. As a result, the companies said they will be able to detect and stop the spread of flu before multiple facilities are infected, preventing millions of dollars in lost productivity.
“Just last year, Alveo announced a partnership program that would enable companies in agriculture and public health to build accurate, rapid, in-the-field tests to detect a wide array of pathogens,” Shaun Holt, CEO of Alveo, said in a release. “Thanks to our platform and the joint development effort with NYtor, pork producers will soon have the means to monitor flu status of their animals in real time.”
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