Zymo Research Announces Partnership with Tecan for COVID-19 Viral RNA Extraction

Ready-to-go processing solution for COVID-19 high complexity testing labs

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Mar 31, 2020, 19:38 ET

IRVINE, Calif., March 31, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Zymo Research announced today a partnership with Tecan to launch a ready-to-go processing solution to streamline viral DNA/RNA extraction from nasopharyngeal swabs, oropharyngeal swabs, saliva, sputum, plasma, and serum. The DreamPrep^™ NAP workstation, featuring Zymo Research's Quick-DNA/RNA^™ Viral MagBead Kit, simplifies the process by providing pre-loaded scripts, optimized for viral RNA extraction, that are currently being validated for COVID-19 assays by high complexity testing labs.

Zymo Research and Tecan partner to launch a ready-to-go processing solution that streamlines viral DNA/RNA extraction from nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swabs, saliva, sputum, plasma, and serum.

As the COVID-19 pandemic expands, laboratories are scaling up testing using high-throughput automated workflows to isolate the viral RNA for subsequent detection. These workflows typically require time-consuming scripting, configuration, and optimization for the nucleic acid extraction to function properly, which can dramatically decrease lab scalability in this critical time.

"Nucleic acid extractions can be one of the most challenging, frustrating, and time-consuming portions of a workflow to automate," said Ryan Kemp, Director of Nucleic Acid Solutions at Zymo Research. "With push-to-start sample purification, the DreamPrep^™ NAP workstation is uniquely positioned to help labs around the world quickly and effectively scale their testing to accommodate a much larger number of tests and ultimately mitigate the spread of the virus."

Kemp notes, "We understand the need to rapidly respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and have dramatically increased our supply of the Quick-DNA/RNA™ Viral MagBead extraction kits. Additionally, we have expanded our team of technical experts to help with the global effort. Both Zymo Research and Tecan are giving the highest priority to assist researchers who are extracting viral RNA using the DreamPrep^™ NAP workstation."

In the past year, Zymo Research and Tecan have worked together to optimize magnetic bead-based extraction of viral RNA using the cutting-edge DreamPrep^™ NAP workstation. The result of this collaboration is a preprogrammed, preconfigured, load-and-go system that is optimized for high-throughput viral RNA extraction. The workstation features a user-friendly interface and guided setup to streamline implementation.

"By combining the Zymo Research optimized extraction kits with our easy-to-use liquid handling platform, we have delivered a complete viral processing solution with the DreamPrep^™ NAP workstation," said Beatrice Marg-Haufe, Product Manager at Tecan. "In this challenging climate, we are working very closely with Zymo Research to enable scientists to respond to this pandemic quickly."

For a quote or more information on the DreamPrep^™ NAP workstation featuring Zymo Research please visit https://www.zymoresearch.com/pages/quick-viral-covid-19.

About Zymo Research Corp.
Zymo Research is a privately owned company that has been serving the scientific community with state-of-the-art molecular biology tools since 1994. "The Beauty of Science is to Make Things Simple" is their motto, which is reflected in every product they produce, from their epigenetics to DNA/RNA purification technologies. Historically recognized as the leader in epigenetics, Zymo Research is breaking boundaries with novel solutions for sample collection, microbiomic measurements, and NGS technologies that are high quality and simple to use. Follow Zymo Research on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram.

About Tecan
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, and 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 and R&D sites in both Europe and North America, and maintains a sales and service network in 52 countries.

Trademarks:
All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. The Zymo Research Corp. trademark, with its design elements including the stylized three-shaded ovals (budding yeast), and the words "The Beauty of Science is to Make Things Simple," and Quick-DNA/RNA are registered trademarks of Zymo Research Corp. DreamPrep is a trademark of Tecan.

SOURCE Zymo Research Corp.