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The RADx program has paved a path forward for small- and medium-sized diagnostics companies with innovative ideas and novel technologies to help meet public health challenges and compete in the marketplace. A funded network of agile academic or private laboratories that can objectively evaluate novel clinical tests, whether they originate from the largest diagnostics companies or new startups, can provide impartial and cost-effective third-party assessments of test performance to facilitate FDA decision making. Source: Nature Biotechnology.

In an opinion piece, Roxanne Khamsi, a science journalist covering the COVID-19 pandemic, says that “throughout the pandemic, there have been various kinds of medical anomalies,” such as “people who test positive for months and others who never get infected despite living in close quarters with Covid sufferers.” Khamsi writes that “such surprising cases are often declared ‘outliers’ and shrugged off (and, indeed, should be downplayed when designing public health policies for the general population), but unusual examples of any disease can offer important insights for scientists, and most critically, lead to new medicines for that illness and others.” NIBIB immunologist Kaitlyn Sadtler is quoted as saying, “The complexity of the immune system cannot be overstated. ... It makes it amazingly effective but amazingly difficult to understand.” Source: New York Times

A small study funded by the US National Institutes of Health (NIS) has found that Covid-19 lateral flow tests (LFTs) can be as effective in detecting SARS-CoV-2 infection as polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests when used for serial screening conducted every three days. Source: Medical Device Network.

Rapid antigens testing is just as effective in preventing COVID-19 outbreaks as polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, tests when used as part of a regular screening program, according to the National Institutes of Health. Source: McKnight's Long-Term Care News

A small study funded by NIH has found that COVID-19 antigen testing and PCR tests are equally effective in detecting SARS-CoV-2 infection when used for serial screening conducted every three days. The results are good news for antigen test makers such as Abbott, Becton Dickinson and Quidel. Source: Medtechdive

The editors of MIT Technology Review introduce this year's 35 brilliant young entrepreneurs, inventors, visionaries, humanitarians and pioneers who are working to make the world a better place. Source: MIT Technology Review

Amid the continued deluge of emergency use authorizations from the FDA, rapid antigen tests for COVID-19 are more widely available and easily accessible than ever. Source: FierceBiotech

Unlike many other viral testing platforms, MatMaCorp’s all-in-one Solas 8 testing device provides results for six samples in 120 minutes and doesn’t require the additional lab support often lacking in rural areas. To help make the pivot to the human health market, the company applied to the NIH RADx initiative, Source: VentureWell

Thinking back to a year ago when terror struck worldwide and the full weight of the Covid-19 pandemic began to set in, NIH quickly mobilized on multiple fronts—one of which was the RADx initiative, with the goal of helping to meet the huge demand for fast, accurate Covid-19 tests. Source: NIH Record.