RE: AZN UKAS accreditation with primerdesign16 Dec 2021 08:14
Regarding larrys update on UKAS accreditation with Astra Zeneca here is a section from an RNS dated 24 feb 21.
That is over ten months ago.
Is this accreditation new ? I imagine big advancements have been made since then .
“Successful implementation of saliva testing of AstraZeneca staff using the genesig® COVID-19 assay
In early 2020, AstraZeneca set up an internal programme of voluntary SARS-CoV-2 testing for asymptomatic employees in the UK and Sweden using Novacyt’s genesig® COVID-19 test. By February 2021, approximately 70,000 SARS-CoV-2 PCR tests had been completed within AstraZeneca’s internal global testing centres, of which 54,000 are based on saliva swabs. Following the introduction of saliva testing, adoption by employees increased approximately four-fold and over 90% of 1,062 employees surveyed expressed a preference for the change from the typical oropharyngeal (throat) or nasopharyngeal nasal) swabs. The study highlights the 90% uptake of saliva testing for asymptomatic patients and the excellent detection rates of 0.33 copies of whole viral genome RNA/µL, sensitivity of =95% and 100% specificity.9 These result shows how PCR testing can be used for asymptomatic mass-testing