Eurofins' U.S. Clinical Diagnostics Network Launches Coronavirus (COVID-19) Antibody Testing

FRAMINGHAM, Mass., April 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Eurofins' U.S. Clinical Diagnostics network announced today that blood-based antibody testing for Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 will begin Monday, April 6 at Boston Heart Diagnostics, a Eurofins subsidiary. Given the overwhelming demand in acute care settings, the laboratories will initially offer the test to hospitals only. As capacity increases, and as knowledge on the disease develops, the Eurofins' network plans to begin offering testing more broadly.

Eurofins has been at the forefront of fighting SARS-CoV-2 in the U.S., launching proprietary, active infection testing through laboratories including Viracor Eurofins and Eurofins Diatherix using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing. Both laboratories have available capacity for additional PCR testing with same or next day results. 

Unlike the NP swab-based PCR test, which are subject to the results of ongoing studies at hospitals around the world, blood-based serology testing may become a tool to identify people who were exposed, may have developed some level of immunity to COVID-19 but potentially had mild to no symptoms. Testing is recommended at least 14 days after potential exposure ? giving the body the time it needs to build an immune response and produce antibodies. Over time, antibody testing is likely to become a crucial next step in fighting the spread of the virus.

Hospitals along the East Coast, including those in hot-spot areas, will have the option to courier specimens to Boston Heart Diagnostics for results in just hours.  Viracor Eurofins will continue to support hospitals, transplant programs, and other immunocompromised and critically ill patients by offering its own serology test, which is expected to launch in mid-April.

The Eurofins' network will initially run nearly 5,000 tests per day, or 200 results every hour. This speed is crucial to helping first responders and healthcare providers.  Over time, Eurofins' antibody testing can also help experts understand how much of the population has been infected with Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. 

Patients who suspect they were exposed to Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 or who have experienced unconfirmed COVID-19 symptoms, should consult with a local hospital on if and how to get tested as recommended by heath authorities in their state.

To order testing at Boston Heart Diagnostics, please contact [email protected].

For questions about the testing please contact Patrick Noland at: [email protected].

About Boston Heart Diagnostics

Boston Heart Diagnostics of Framingham, MA has been a leader in advanced cardiovascular testing for the past 14 years, and became part of the Eurofins laboratory network about 5 years ago. The company is committed to providing medical professionals throughout the country with specialized biochemical and genetic testing so that can optimize lifestyle modification and medication in their patients for cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention. Because CVD patients are at substantially higher risk of mortality from Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 infection, Boston Heart Diagnostics is pleased to be able to offer both nasal-pharyngeal swab and IgM and IgG antibody testing as of April 6^th, 2020. For more information, please visit https:///www.bostonheartdiagnostics.com. 

About Viracor

With over 30 years of specialized expertise in infectious disease, immunology and allergy testing for immunocompromised and critical patients, Viracor Eurofins is committed to helping medical professionals, transplant teams, reference laboratories and biopharmaceutical companies get results faster, when it matters most. Viracor is passionate about delivering value to its clients by providing timely, actionable information, never losing sight of the connection between the testing it performs and the patients it ultimately serves. Viracor is a 100 percent subsidiary of Eurofins Scientific (EUFI.PA), the global leader in bio-analytical testing, and one of the world leaders in genomic services. For more information, please visit https://www.eurofins.com/ and https://www.viracor-eurofins.com/ .

About Eurofins - A global leader in bio-analysis

Eurofins Scientific, through its subsidiaries (hereinafter "Eurofins" or "the Group"), believes it is a global leader in food, environmental, pharmaceutical and cosmetics products testing and in agroscience CRO services. It is also one of the global independent market leaders in certain testing and laboratory services for genomics, discovery pharmacology, forensics, CDMO, advanced material sciences and in the support of clinical studies. In addition, Eurofins is one of the leading global emerging players in esoteric clinical diagnostic testing. With over 47,000 staff across a network of more than 900 independent companies in over 50 countries generally specialised by end client markets and operating more than 800 laboratories, Eurofins offers a portfolio of over 200,000 analytical methods to evaluate the safety, identity, composition, authenticity, origin, traceability and purity of biological substances and products, as well as providing innovative clinical diagnostic testing services. The Group's objective is to provide customers with high-quality and innovative services, accurate results on time and, when requested, expert advice by its highly-qualified staff.

Eurofins is committed to pursuing its dynamic growth strategy by expanding both its technology portfolio and its geographic reach. Through R&D and acquisitions, the Group draws on the latest developments in the field of biotechnology and analytical chemistry to offer its clients unique analytical solutions and a very large range of testing methods.

As one of the most innovative and quality-oriented international companies in its industry, Eurofins is ideally positioned to support its clients' increasingly stringent quality and safety standards and the increasing demands of regulatory authorities and healthcare practitioners around the world.

Shares in Eurofins Scientific are listed on the Euronext Paris Stock Exchange (ISIN FR0000038259, Reuters EUFI.PA, Bloomberg ERF FP).

SOURCE Boston Heart Diagnostics