Alveo Technologies, Inc., a leader in molecular sensing and diagnostics with its proprietary technology platform, has announced a partnership with NYtor B.V (The Netherlands), an innovative assay developer, to create a rapid, accurate, pen-side test that will detect the dominant swine influenza strains, including H1N1, H1N2 and H3N2.

In the United States, pork industry management systems regularly move pigs through different stages of production such as the nursery, growers and finishers. Transitions between stages need to occur on time to make room for the next group of animals entering the next stage, and knowing whether animals are infected prior to transport is critical for good health management. If a group of infected pigs are brought into a new facility, the virus can spread rapidly through susceptible swine. Even worse, newly infected swine could be moved to additional facilities, spreading swine flu throughout the new destination.

The economic consequences of swine flu are severe. Infected pigs in the growing phase will see a production loss that will border on 12% to 15%, and if these animals are coinfected with other diseases like porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus, then losses can approach 30% to 40%.

Currently, PCR tests provide results in a best-case scenario of 24-to-48 hours but wait times of up to five days are more common, because samples must be shipped to a laboratory for processing. As a result, it’s nearly impossible to definitively know the flu status of pigs prior to transport.

Rapid, in-the-field test that’s precise

The Alveo platform, including its mobile app, Alveo Sense, is a rapid, handheld, reusable and rugged multiplexed molecular diagnostic device. It pairs advanced molecular assays with cloud-enabled data analytics to provide highly accurate and sensitive real-time detection, analysis and diagnosis of diseases, pathogens and contaminants. The platform employs Alveo’s globally patented direct-electrical sensing approach to pathogen identification, leveraging loop-mediated isothermal amplification. This portable molecular lab can deliver rapid test results at the point-of-need or in the field. Alveo’s platform also provides geotagged results that can be uploaded to the cloud to give a real-time view of national outbreaks and inform response.

NYtor is developing swine flu assays for the Alveo platform that will enable operations to monitor the flu status of their animals in real time with rapid, highly accurate pen-side tests. As a result, they will be able to detect and stop the spread of swine flu before multiple facilities are infected, preventing millions of dollars in lost productivity.

“Combining our custom LAMP-based dedicated assays with the Alveo platform will create a strong market solution to fill a need in the pork production industry,” said Han Zendman, CEO at NYtor.

“Just last year, Alveo announced a partnership program that would enable companies in agriculture and public health to build accurate, rapid, in-the-field tests to detect a wide array of pathogens,” said Shaun Holt, CEO of Alveo. “That partnership strategy is delivering even greater results than we anticipated, with tests in development for avian influenza and now, for swine flu. Thanks to our platform and the joint development effort with NYtor, pork producers will soon have the means to monitor flu status of their animals in real time.”