Roche receives US authorization for Zika test emergency

9 years ago - Published in Finance, Fundamental Analysis

Roche, the Swiss pharmaceutical giant, has obtained emergency authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to use a diagnostic Zika virus test. The FDA has given the go-ahead to this test called LightMix Zika rRT-PCR, in view of the situation of urgency especially in Latin America. 

"The LightMix Zika test is an easy-to-use molecular diagnostic test that enables healthcare professionals to quickly detect the virus," said Uwe Oberlaender, the head of molecular diagnostics at Basel-based Roche. Roche has also developed another test for Zika, called the cobas Zika, currently used in some collection centers in the United States.

In Brazil, Zika virus has been linked to more than 1,800 cases of microcephaly, and U.S. officials expect as many as 270 cases in Puerto Rico.