Biocrucible Ltd at Granta Park in the Cambridge technology cluster has received funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to explore rapid molecular testing options for COVID-19 and other pathogens, which could be used in the home or in field settings.
Cambridge-based office design and fit-out business COEL and a fellow city company, lab furniture specialist InterFocus, worked flat out to help Biocrucible install additional benching and develop new laboratories to enable the project.
Biocrucible is developing kinetic acceleration technology with broad applicability in biotechnology.
The company is headed by isothermal DNA amplification pioneer, Dr Niall Armes, who previously ran Cambridge-based TwistDx.
TwistDx was founded to expand the uptake of RPA-based molecular testing and technology in all applicable areas – freeing scientists and technology developers from the constraints imposed by high temperature DNA amplification techniques.
Bill and Melinda Gates are backing multiple projects around the world to find solutions to the coronavirus pandemic. The foundation’s financial commitment to fight the virus has been increased to £250 million but it also pulls in considerable global science & technology expertise through collaborations and is dedicating much of this capability to the campaign.