As cases have begun to spread in the U.S. and around the world, BD is teaming up with CerTest, a Spain-based test maker, to develop a mass-produced molecular diagnostic for monkeypox.
The project aims to have CerTest’s CE-marked Viasure test and reagents operate on the BD MAX automated PCR system, which is designed to process up to 24 samples within three hours.
In addition to running tests for a range of infections—including respiratory, gastrointestinal and sexually transmitted diseases—the BD MAX instrument also allows users to create their own protocols for lab-developed tests, tailoring them for rarer conditions.
“Enabling labs to rapidly respond to unexpected challenges is the kind of evolving healthcare situations for which the BD MAX open system reagent suite is designed,” Nikos Pavlidis, BD’s vice president of molecular diagnostics, said in a statement.
This week, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention raised its alert level for the disease, after the global number of recently confirmed cases passed 1,000. The agency urged international travelers to take extra precautions, but said the risk to the general public remains low. Monkeypox is closely related to smallpox but typically has milder symptoms, including the similar characteristic skin rash, though it has been fatal in a small percentage of cases.
According to the CDC, cases of monkeypox have been diagnosed in at least 29 countries, with at least 300 in the U.K. and nearly 200 in Spain. As of June 7, the U.S. has logged 35 infections in 15 states.
Roche’s diagnostic division also announced in May that it has begun rolling out three research-only PCR test kits for the virus.
Developed with its subsidiary TIB Molbiol—which specializes in quickly turning around tests for emerging infectious disease threats—the first diagnostic looks for signs of any orthopoxvirus, which includes smallpox, cowpox and horsepox as well as monkeypox. The second test hunts for monkeypox specifically, while the third test combines the two.
On the treatment side, late last month—following the success of its mRNA-based vaccine for COVID-19—Moderna announced it would begin working on a specialized inoculation for monkeypox, alongside its ongoing research programs into the common cold, the flu and respiratory syncytial virus.
However, due to monkeypox’s similarity to its more famous cousin, vaccines for smallpox have also shown to be effective against the disease.