Veredus Labs’ VereFlu chip tested successfully on clinical samples of Pandemic H1N1-2009 influenza strain

SINGAPORE: Veredus Laboratories, a leading provider of molecular detection tests, today announced that the VereFlu chip has been tested successfully on confirmed pandemic H1N1-2009 influenza positive samples in a joint trial with the National Public Health Laboratory (NPHL).

The VereFlu chip, based on STMicroelectronics’s lab-on-chip platform, is a portable lab-on-chip application that can identify and differentiate human strains of Influenza A and B viruses in a single test with high accuracy and sensitivity.

The ability of the chip to simultaneously lock on multiple segments of the genes of the A(H1N1) influenza virus enables it to identify the virus with a much higher degree of confidence compared to other tests.

This capability is made possible by the microarray on the chip and this is especially relevant for influenza viruses as they are known for their rapid mutation. The advantage of VereFlu is its ability to identify an infection without multiple testing as required by current methods, thereby saving time.

“Monitoring of influenza activity is very important, as demonstrated by this crisis with H1N1-2009. The NPHL does regular surveillance of influenza subtypes and strains circulating in the community. We have now involved more medical labs to participate in the surveillance work. We are constantly on the lookout for new technologies able to detect and identify influenza virus types quickly. It is good that Singapore companies are able to respond with new solutions for testing pandemic influenza," said Associate Professor Raymond Lin, Head of the Ministry of Health’s National Public Health Laboratory.

“We are greatly encouraged with the findings as it validates our proprietary methodology. Veredus will continue to work with our current customers, including public health laboratories around the world to further confirm our findings. Our next step is to enable the chip to check for drug resistance in Influenza A(H1N1) as it mutates. This will significantly enhance its capability to combat potentially deadly variants of influenza viruses,” said Dr Rosemary Tan, CEO of Veredus Laboratories. “VereFlu is already being deployed to several pilot users in Asia and Middle East and we look forward to increasing our customer base.”

“In face of this global pandemic on A(H1N1), the combination of ST’s lab-on-chip platform with Veredus’ molecular diagnostics expertise stands out as a powerful tool in its ability to provide rapid and accurate identification of the virus,” said Anton Hofmeister, Group Vice-President and General Manager for ST’s Microfluidic Division. “The findings of the trial confirm our joint efforts in the field of molecular diagnostics are on the right track and set to catalyze the adoption of VereFluTM in the market.”