Skip to main content
Premium Trial:

Request an Annual Quote

Novacyt in Dispute with UK Department of Health and Social Care Over Coronavirus Test Contract

NEW YORK — Novacyt said on Friday that it has been unable to secure an extension for its SARS-CoV-2 test supply contract with the UK Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), threatening one of the French diagnostic firm's key revenue drivers.

About a year ago, Novacyt struck a deal to supply SARS-CoV-2 assays to the DHSC for an initial term of six months. According to Novacyt, active discussions to extend that contract have failed, although it did supply its Promate SARS-CoV-2 detection workflow in the first quarter of this year at DHSC's request.

Novacyt noted that it generated €83.0 million ($98.5 million) in the first quarter of 2021, about half of which came from sales of Promate and other products to the DHSC. The remaining revenues were from international sales and private sector testing operations. 

Novacyt said it is disputing the contract with DHSC, which may negatively impact its fourth quarter 2020 revenues. The firm added that it has "strong grounds to assert its contractual rights."

The Scan

Positive Framing of Genetic Studies Can Spark Mistrust Among Underrepresented Groups

Researchers in Human Genetics and Genomics Advances report that how researchers describe genomic studies may alienate potential participants.

Small Study of Gene Editing to Treat Sickle Cell Disease

In a Novartis-sponsored study in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers found that a CRISPR-Cas9-based treatment targeting promoters of genes encoding fetal hemoglobin could reduce disease symptoms.

Gut Microbiome Changes Appear in Infants Before They Develop Eczema, Study Finds

Researchers report in mSystems that infants experienced an enrichment in Clostridium sensu stricto 1 and Finegoldia and a depletion of Bacteroides before developing eczema.

Acute Myeloid Leukemia Treatment Specificity Enhanced With Stem Cell Editing

A study in Nature suggests epitope editing in donor stem cells prior to bone marrow transplants can stave off toxicity when targeting acute myeloid leukemia with immunotherapy.