* To produce test developed by private firm Attomarker
* Test approved by Britain's MHRA
* Already making ventilators for Britain
(Recasts, adds details from Attomarker statement)
By Pushkala Aripaka and Alistair Smout
July 8 (Reuters) - Smiths Group will help produce a
blood-based COVID-19 antibody test approved by Britain's
healthcare regulator in the firm's latest involvement in
tackling the coronavirus.
London-listed Smiths, whose baggage screening kit and
explosive detectors are common in airports, delayed a
long-sought separation of its medical unit in March to focus on
making ventilators for Britain.
Smiths said on Wednesday it had agreed with privately held
biopharma firm Attomarker, which makes tests for diabetes,
allergies and infections, to manufacture its handheld, triple
antibody COVID-19 test device for an undisclosed sum.
Antibodies are the body's natural defence to infections, and
their presence in the blood to confirm COVID-19 is also being
used in tests developed by Roche and Abbott.
Attomarker's test for the respiratory illness caused by the
coronavirus will look for three different virus proteins and
three types of antibodies, improving its chances of more
accurate detections even after a long period.
The firm separately said its technology, approved by
Britain's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency
for use by the NHS, had delivered results in seven minutes with
a sensitivity of up to 96%, 14 days after COVID-19 symptoms
appeared in a bench-top version. (https://bit.ly/3iIVlAc)
Attomarker, which was spun off from the University of
Exeter, focuses on making blood-testing devices that use cloud
technology to connect to medical professionals.
Smiths said it had been in talks with Attomarker since April
over testing and developing the technology, adding that it had
the ability to scale production to meet demand.
A portable version is expected to go into production in late
2020 or early 2021.
Attomarker said that it was also testing a combined COVID-19
and flu antibody test with this year's flu vaccine.
(Reporting by Pushkala Aripaka in Bengaluru and Alisair Smout
in London; Editing by Bernard Orr, Maju Samuel and Alexander
Smith)
Smiths Group (SMIN)