Irish company MyBio to sell 10-minute Covid-19 antibody test

Kilkenny-based life sciences company MyBio has signed an exclusive distribution deal with a German manufacturer to sell a Covid-19 antibody test that promises results in just ten minutes.

The company declined to say how much the deal with MöLab is worth but industry insiders estimated it will give MyBio a circa € 2 million revenue boost over the next 12 to 18 months depending on take-up.

MyBio said the test kit provides near perfect diagnostic specificity of 99.5 per cent IgG and 99.2 per cent IgM. These are measurements that reveal whether antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 are in an individual’s system.

The company is selling the easy-to-use kits at a cost of €196 (ex-VAT) per box of ten. The test is done primarily via a finger-prick sample.

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MyBio said the test, which it claims is the most accurate one available here, could play a critical role as the lockdown eases and more people return to their workplaces.

Demand

"We anticipate strong demand for this kit from corporations, businesses, professional laboratories, and other life science companies and institutes across the country," said Dan Dilks, MyBio's head of sales and business development.

“If offered by their employer, this test kit will provide an important and simple pre-screening service for employees in Ireland, which will prove an invaluable tool in the fight against Covid-19 in the coming months as people return to work and desire to know if they have been exposed,” he added.

MyBio was founded in 2009 by Linda Nolan, who holds a PhD in molecular biology and has over 20 years' professional experience.

The company, which was awarded the top prize at Ireland’s National Enterprise Awards in 2015, supplies more than 6,000 products and has more than 2,000 customers.