Bio-Rad Laboratories has launched Bio-Plex Pro Human SARS-CoV-2 Variant neutralisation antibody assays, which allow scientists to measure neutralising antibodies quickly and efficiently against wild-type and significant variants of SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Scientists developing vaccines and therapeutics can determine the efficacy of their product from development through all the clinical phases. Epidemiologists can perform seroprevalence studies to better understand the longevity of the neutralising antibody response from infection or vaccination. Compared to using traditional cell-based assays and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) tests, researchers can increase their throughput when using the multiplex Bio-Plex Pro assays.
The assays are offered in an 11-plex complete all-in-one kit format that consists of the wild-type RBD and S1 and 9 variant antigens, as well as customisable singleplex assays, 2-plex Delta variant coupled beads, and a custom Assay Developer Kit to create assays to any new SARS-CoV-2 variant – such as Omicron – for maximum flexibility.
“As variants of interest and concern become the predominant forms of SARS-CoV-2 infecting populations, it’s critical to understand whether the antibodies, elicited by a prior COVID-19 infection or vaccination, are still able to neutralise the circulating virus variants,” said Candice Cox, Bio-Rad Immunoassays Marketing Manager, Life Science Group. “We are pleased to be able to add these neutralising antibody assays to our offering of existing Bio-Plex Pro IgA, IgG, and IgM 4-plex serology kits for COVID-19-related research in vaccine development and post-market surveillance studies.”