Lexogen Receives FFG Funding to Develop a Novel SARS-CoV-2 Test for Mass Screening

News provided by

Apr 29, 2020, 09:00 ET

VIENNA, April 29, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Lexogen GmbH, a Vienna based Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) and transcriptomics company, receives funding from the Austria Research Promotion Agency (FFG) for the development of a novel SARS-CoV-2 test method for mass screening.

The company has already developed and commercialized multiple methods for high throughput RNA analysis and will base the test on its QuantSeq-Flex Targeted RNA-Seq platform. The Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) test will enable true mass screening of tens of thousands of samples in parallel.

"Identifying the newly infected on a broad scale will allow to isolate entire infection clusters at an early stage and help fight the present pandemic as well as reoccurring infection waves. It will also enable us to screen hospitals and retirement homes and test especially first responders and front-line workers on a daily basis, helping to keep these essential facilities open and safe," explains Alexander Seitz, CEO and founder of Lexogen.

The company will also provide a test for tracking the evolution (mutations) of the virus, that is important for prediction of future epidemics and vaccine development as well as a diagnostic panel to differentiate the new corona virus from other common respiratory pathogens helping doctors to provide the right therapy.

The funding is provided by the Austrian government and managed by the FFG, Austria's national funding agency for industrial research and development, as part of its "Emergency Call to research COVID-19 in the wake of the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2".

About Lexogen:

Established in 2007, Lexogen is a transcriptomics and Next-Generation Sequencing company, focusing on the development of innovative methods for RNA analysis. Its portfolio includes multiple innovative and well-established protocols for RNA sequencing sample preparation, external RNA spike-in controls, as well as bioinformatics tools and sequencing services. Lexogen is a privately held company, headquartered in Vienna, Austria with a subsidiary in New Hampshire, US.
For more information about Lexogen visit www.lexogen.com and follow @lexogen.

Contact person at Lexogen:
Jekaterina Aleksejeva
Senior Marketing Manager
Tel.: +43 (0) 699 1023 8946
E-mail: [email protected]
www.lexogen.com

SOURCE Lexogen