Benzinga | Feb 8, 2021 09:18AM EST

Oxford Immunotec Reports Deal With Green Cross Medical Science To Market T-SPOT Discovery SARS-CoV-2 Kit For Measurement Of T Cell Immune Response To Infection In South Korea

Oxford Immunotec Global PLC (NASDAQ:OXFD) (the "Company"), a global, high-growth diagnostics company today announces it has worked with GC MS and MESDIA Co., Ltd. to enter into an MOU to market the research use only T-SPOT Discovery SARS-CoV-2 kit in South Korea.

Under this agreement, GC MS will market/sell, MESDIA will import, and Oxford Immunotec Korea will provide overall support for the T-SPOT Discovery SARS-CoV-2 kit.

Based on the Company's T-SPOT technology, the only globally approved ELISPOT currently used clinically for the diagnosis of Tuberculosis infection; the T-SPOT Discovery SARS-CoV-2 kit is already available for research use across Europe and the USA. Study data recently released by Public Health England1 using the T-SPOT Discovery SARS-CoV-2 kit suggests that individuals with a SARS-CoV-2 specific T cell response, but without detectible antibodies (serology), may be protected from infection. Therefore, measuring the T cell response to SARS-CoV-2 may be an important adjunct to serological analysis.

GC MS is an industry leader in the field of medical devices and diagnostic reagents, and a member of the GC Pharmaceutical companies, in South Korea. They already carry six diagnostic tests for COVID-19, and are committed to offering a full range of diagnosis/treatment methods by way of diverse testing techniques, including PCR tests, antigen tests and antibody tests. T-SPOT Discovery SARS-CoV-2 will enable them to add a research test to measure the T cell response to SARS-CoV-2 infection to their offering. The test is currently being used in studies in the UK for COVID-19 vaccine development and for clinical evaluation.

Walt Ling, VP commercial APAC for Oxford Immunotec said, "We are delighted to work in partnership with GC MS. This MOU means that the T-SPOT Discovery SARS-CoV-2 kit will be available to more researchers and multiple biopharmaceutical companies that are developing innovative treatments and vaccines across South Korea, which we believe will make a significant contribution towards informing how we can better manage the ongoing pandemic in the country."