CRISPR startup Mammoth Biosciences will partner with GlaxoSmithKline’s (NYSE:GSK) consumer healthcare division to develop a home-based diagnostic capable of detecting active SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19.
The collaboration will use Mammoth Biosciences’ CRISPR-based Detectr platform to design “guide-RNA” that can identify and signal the presence of viral strands obtained through a simple nasal swab, according to Mammoth Biosciences CEO Trevor Martin.
Martin said he couldn’t speak to the specifics of the deal with GSK.
“This is really a long-term play in the next generation of diagnostics,” he said in an interview with MassDevice. “One of the powers of the CRISPR-based platform is you can switch out the guide-DNA, so over the long term you can imagine using the same platform for a variety of diseases.”
The company intends to file for an FDA emergency use authorization for the test by the end of 2020. If it’s app…