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Twist Bioscience Supplies Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with Custom SARS-CoV-2 Synthetic RNA Controls
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Twist Bioscience Corporation (Nasdaq: TWST), a company enabling customers to succeed through its offering of
About this update from Twist Bioscience Corporation
[{"type":"text","content":" SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--\nTwist Bioscience Corporation (Nasdaq: TWST), a company enabling customers to succeed through its offering of high-quality synthetic DNA using its silicon platform, today announced it will supply the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) with a customized version of Twist SARS-CoV-2 Synthetic RNA Controls for use in the CDC Influenza SARS-CoV-2 (Flu SC2) Multiplex Assay. The CDC SARS-CoV-2 (Flu SC2) Multiplex Assay tests for influenza A, B and SARS-CoV-2 simultaneously.\n\nPositive controls provide quality control measures for the development, verification, and ongoing validation of both next-generation sequencing (NGS) and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assays. In addition to using the assay at its primary site, CDC intends to distribute this multiplex assay to additional public health laboratories for testing across the United States.\n\n“We have partnered with the CDC over the last several months to optimize these controls to be stable at room temperature for ease of shipping and storage,” said Emily M. Leproust, Ph.D., CEO and co-founder of Twist Bioscience. “Integrating our SARS-CoV-2 control into the Flu SC2 Multiplex Assay supports the accurate detection of SARS-CoV-2 in specimens from patients exhibiting symptoms that could result from either COVID-19 or the flu. We remain committed to using our robust synthesis platform to work with industry and government agencies to improve health globally and expect to make these optimized controls widely available to customers later this month.”\n\nIn March 2020, Twist launched synthetic SARS-CoV-2 RNA distinct reference sequences as positive controls for the development of both next-generation sequencing (NGS) and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assays to test for SARS-CoV-2. These controls continue to be included in many different assays worldwide and can be used to determine the limit of detection, monitor day-to-day test variations, and are included on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website as reference materials for SARS-CoV-2. In June, additional SARS-CoV-2 controls were released to cover the evolution of the virus, and in December, Twist announced plans to develop controls for a newly identified strain known as the UK strain or B1.1.7 lineage, varian...