NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Idaho Technology has won a $3.3 million grant from the US Air Force to further develop its FilmArray pathogen detection system and seek a CLIA waiver from the Food and Drug Administration, the company said today.
The funding from the Defense Threat Agency (DTRA), on behalf of the US Air Force Assistant Surgeon General, Modernization Directorate, will be used to develop a rapid test for a number of pathogens that cause infectious diseases.
The FilmArray integrates sample preparation, PCR amplification, detection, and analysis utilities into one system that can detect more than 100 targets from one sample in less than an hour, the Salt Lake City-based firm said.
A Johns Hopkins University assessment of more than 200 instruments completed this spring found that the FilmArray was the only existing system that aligned with the needs of the Department of Defense's Epidemic Outbreak Surveillance objectives, the company said.