CAP TODAY Pathology/Laboratory Medicine/Laboratory Management
May 2021—Thermo Fisher Scientific launched its Applied Biosystems TaqMan SARS-CoV-2 Mutation Panel, with a customizable menu of 22 verified real-time PCR assays for identification of SARS-CoV-2 mutations. The assays enable surveillance of variants that cause COVID-19 infection in specific regions globally and allow laboratories to choose which mutations to track.
The panel is designed to be highly scalable, the company says; it can run a few or hundreds of samples to identify one or many mutations.
“With an evolving virus, having up-to-date, reliable, and accurate information is critical in fighting back,” Mark Smedley, president of the genetic sciences business of Thermo Fisher Scientific, said in a press release. “With this panel, we’re empowering researchers and clinicians by putting another tool in their hands to monitor changes in the virus so they can make informed and effective decisions for overall public health.”