Report first published on healthandcare.scot

A suite of antibody tests developed at the University of Aberdeen is offering much higher accuracy in detecting the covid virus SARS-CoV-2 than before and, for the first time, differentiating accurately between different virus variants.

A partnership behind the test system, to create the innovative antibody technology known as Epitogen, brought together the Aberdeen scientists with biotechnology group Vertebrate Antibodies Ltd and NHS Grampian.

The tests will offer the opportunity to not just establish how much virus is circulating in a community, but which variants are involved.

In addition, the approach will allow researchers to see whether the antibodies that a person has against the virus are due to previous exposure to the infection or as a result of being vaccinated – with the added benefit that it is sensitive enough to indicate how effective a vaccine is against an emerging variant and how long the protection lasts.

The academic lead for the project is Aberdeen University Professor Mirela Delibegovic:

“Accurate antibody tests will become increasingly important in the management of the pandemic, and this is a truly game-changing technology with the potential to dramatically change the trajectory of global recovery from the pandemic.

“As we move through the pandemic, we are seeing the virus mutate into more transmissible variants, such as the Delta variant, whereby they impact negatively on vaccine performance and overall immunity. Currently available tests cannot detect these variants. As the virus mutates, existing antibody tests will become even less accurate, hence the urgent need for a novel approach to incorporate mutant strains into the test – this is exactly what we have achieved.

“Looking ahead, discussions are already underway to explore a possible roll-out of the tests to the NHS which we hope to see happen soon.”

The team says the EpitoGen platform will also allow them to create highly sensitive and specific diagnostic tests for infectious and auto-immune diseases such as Type 1 Diabetes.

The team received funding from the Scottish government Chief Scientist Office Rapid Response in COVID-19 (RARC-19) research programme, using an artificial intelligence platform called EpitopePredikt, to identify specific elements, or ‘hot spots’ of the virus that trigger the body’s immune defence.

The researchers were then able to develop a new way to display these viral elements as they would appear naturally in the virus, using a biological platform they named EpitoGen Technology which, they say, allows the test’s performance to be far better than previous approaches.

Dr Robin Brittain-Long, Consultant in Infectious Diseases in NHS Grampian and a member of the research team says what has been developed in Aberdeen is an important step in meeting the challenges of covid:

“This new testing platform adds crucial sensitivity and specificity to the current available serology tests and has the potential to monitor individual and population based immunity in a way that has not been possible before. 

“In my work I have experienced first-hand the detrimental effects this virus can have on people, and I am very excited to add another tool in the toolbox to fight this pandemic.”

Dr Abdo Alnabulsi, Chief Operating Officer of AiBIOLOGICS, who helped develop the technology says the team has been striving to make the platform as accurate as possible:

“Our tests have been designed in line with the gold standard requirements for such tests and in our trials they have proven to be more accurate while giving more useful information than existing tests.”

Dr Tiehui Wang, Director of Biologics at Vertebrate Antibodies Ltd, added: “We are extremely proud that our technologies have made such a contribution in a very challenging year. 

“The EpitoGen tests are the first of their kind and will play a significant role in combating the pandemic and pave the way for future diagnostics”.