18 March 2022 - - Luxembourg-based laboratory group Eurofins' (PAR: ERF) Eurofins Viracor, LLC business, a specialist in testing for infectious disease, immunology, and allergy, has entered into an exclusive license agreement with Cornell University to commercialize several ground-breaking and novel assays aimed at transforming the clinical management of COVID-19 and transplant patients impacted from tissue damage and infections, the company said.

Surgical biopsy is critical in tracking damage of COVID-19 in the body, but the procedure can be painful and costly to the patient.

The Cornell University team, led by Dr. Iwijn De Vlaminck, an associate professor at the Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering, has developed an alternative to biopsy a novel, noninvasive blood test to measure organ injury from COVID-19.

The test uses circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) to gauge the damage that COVID-19 inflicts on cells, tissues and organs.

Additionally, cfDNA is a highly versatile analyte for monitoring the most critical complications of hematopoietic cell transplantation for many blood disorders and cancers, including Graft-Versus-Host Disease, infection, graft failure and disease relapse.

The agreement between Eurofins Viracor and Cornell University will expand access to an innovative blood-based cfDNA methylation sequencing assay for early detection or prediction of major complications related to allogeneic HCT, thus improving the care of stem cell transplant patients.

In another application, Eurofins Viracor intends to commercialize the novel cfDNA test used to identify the presence of urinary tract infections in kidney transplant patients and quantify the degree of damage to the kidney and bladder.

With the combined strength of Eurofins Viracor and its affiliated companies Transplant Genomics, Inc. and Eurofins Donor and Product Testing, Inc. and their innovative transplant testing portfolios, the strategic collaboration with Cornell University marks another critical step in the mission of the Eurofins US Transplant Diagnostics companies to address unmet needs across the continuum of transplant patient care.

With over 30 years of specialized expertise in infectious disease, immunology and allergy testing for immunocompromised and critical patients, Eurofins Viracor, LLC is committed to helping medical professionals, transplant teams and reference laboratories get results faster, when it matters most.

Eurofins 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.