South Korea-based Seegene has signed an agreement with Spanish specialised diagnostics company Werfen to jointly develop the syndromic qPCR assays under the former’s OneSystem business.
Seegene and Werfen will develop the assays by expanding their current collaboration for the Spanish and Portuguese marketplaces.
The partnership aims to jointly develop syndromic qPCR assays that suit the healthcare systems of Spain and Portugal, encompassing tests for sexually transmitted infections and drug resistance.
This will set up infrastructure to enable a rapid response to future pandemics without depending on foreign products and resources, said Seegene.
The deal comes after an agreement made by Seegene in March 2023 with Hylabs, a diagnostic business in Israel.
Seegene CEO Jong-Yoon Chun said: “We will share our PCR technologies and know-how with any company in any country wishing to develop syndromic quantitative PCR assays.
“We aspire to develop PCR diagnostic assays for all diseases so that the world free from diseases would come closer.”
The OneSystem business seeks to share its syndromic quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology and Seegene’s digitalised development system (SGDDS), which enables less experienced researchers to develop tests.
In addition, the South Korean firm will offer automated manufacturing technologies to produce syndromic PCR assays compatible with Seegene’s standardised OneSystem instruments.
The OneSystem Business aims to eradicate all diseases, including cancer and infectious diseases. To do this, Seegene is establishing a global open innovation network where researchers from all nations can collaborate to create syndromic quantitative PCR assays for regional needs.
Werfen OEM chief operating officer José Luis Zarroca said: “We are excited about the possibility of strengthening our partnership with Seegene, and we look forward to developing assays which are tailor-made for Spain and Portugal.”
Seegene said that it is seeking new partners continuously from other European nations to join its worldwide network and anticipates multiple deals to accelerate the growth of its OneSystem business.
In April last year, Seegene received Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) approval and European CE-IVD marking for its Allplex RV Master Assay.
