NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – ANDE announced today that it is the first firm to receive approval from the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a rapid DNA identification platform that complies with new standards under the Rapid DNA Act of 2017.
The new FBI approval is for the ANDE 6C system — a two-hour test that uses a cheek swab sample and the firm's FlexPlex chemistry, a consumable chip, and a ruggedized instrument. The approval allows accredited laboratories to process DNA samples using the ANDE system and search the results against the FBI's Combined DNA Index System program, without manual interpretation or technical review.
A spokesperson for the firm also told GenomeWeb that following the FBI's establishment of implementation guidelines for police stations, which is expected this year, ANDE will be the only system eligible to be used in the booking station.
The company was formerly known as NetBio but changed its name last year to match the name of its rapid DNA testing product, according to the spokesperson. ANDE has also expanded its senior management and commercial teams as it transitions from a research and development-based organization to a commercial company, the spokesperson said.
NetBio's initial rapid DNA testing platform debuted in 2012, began a validation process in 2014, and it's ANDE 4C system was approved by the FBI in 2016. The Rapid DNA Act was signed into law in 2017, broadening the ability of law enforcement to use rapid DNA analysis technology and upload resulting data into a federal database. It requires National DNA Index System approval of rapid DNA systems before they can be used in police booking stations.
"This approval represents a major milestone for public safety," ANDE CEO George Heinrichs said in a statement. "Most rapists and murderers are serial criminals, and Rapid DNA at the police station will link them to their earlier unsolved crimes while still in custody."