Tropical disease detection funded by the government

Medical device manufacturer Atomo Diagnostics has secured $1.38 million in grant funding from the Australian Government to assist in the development and commercialisation of new rapid tests for the detection of dengue and chikungunya viruses, which are leading causes of illness and death in the tropics and subtropics.

According to Atomo Group CEO John Kelly, the government funding will help “deliver a much-needed, easy-to-use solution for the rapid diagnosis of diseases which impact hundreds of millions of people”. This is because the viruses are readily transmitted by mosquitoes and there are no vaccines to prevent infection, so early detection and treatment is critical to limit the risk of complications and death.

Atomo’s all-in-one integrated rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) are recognised internationally for their usability and performance. Its AtomoRapid platform is highly versatile and can accommodate any blood-based assay requiring <50 µL blood. The blood collection unit rotates safely to deliver a controlled blood volume to the correct location on the test strip, and the lancet automatically retracts into the device after lancing.

The funding will enable the company to adapt its current AtomoRapid technology to integrate two test strips into a single device, allowing both antibodies and antigen levels to be detected at the same time from a single blood sample. The all-in-one test will improve on current-generation test kits, which currently require the use of many accessories and have challenges with complexity, high error rates and misdiagnosis.

Atomo will work with a number of Queensland-based academic partners to commercialise the tests.