Lucence, A*STAR Share Study Data Showing SAFER™ Sample Saliva Collection Kit for COVID-19 Inactivates Collected Virus
16.6.2020 13:00:00 EEST | Business Wire | Press release
Molecular diagnostics company Lucence and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) today announced study results indicating that the reagent used in Lucence’s SAFER Sample saliva collection kit inactivates SARS-CoV-2 within 45 seconds of sample collection. This proprietary reagent also stabilizes viral RNA at room temperature for up to one week. Together, these properties enable accessible, non-invasive, and safe sample collection via saliva, which is critical to scaling cost-effective testing worldwide. The reagent used in Lucence’s SAFER Sample kit was invented at A*STAR’s Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200616005320/en/
The SAFER Sample Specimen Collection Kit (Photo: Business Wire)
The SAFER Sample Collection Kit is registered as a Class A medical device with the Health Sciences Authority of Singapore and is an easy-to-use saliva collection kit that comes with a bottle of stabilization fluid to be mixed with the sample at the point of collection, keeping viral RNA stable at room temperature for up to one week. While conventional viral transport media requires cold-chain transport to prevent sample degradation, which can drive up associated costs and limit testing geography, SAFER Sample’s proprietary media means samples can be transported to a lab without the need for chilling.
In this new study, Lucence and A*STAR demonstrated that the proprietary reagent provided with the SAFER Sample kit also achieved complete inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 virus within 45 seconds of exposure. Conventional viral transport media used for collecting nasal and nasopharyngeal swab specimens do not inactivate viral samples, creating risk of exposure to active virus during transportation from collection sites to the laboratory and higher costs associated with biohazard handling procedures. SAFER Sample kit’s viral inactivation capabilities could mean enhanced safety and reduced risk of exposure for any individual involved in the collection, transport, and testing processes. Lucence worked with the Diagnostics Development (DxD) Hub of A*STAR to evaluate the virucidal properties of the SAFER Sample reagent. Duke-NUS Medical School was also engaged to perform the virucidal work with SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Mass testing and screening of large populations is key to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission, morbidity and mortality. By eliminating obstacles to sample integrity and, now, biosafety through viral inactivation, the SAFER Sample kit could expand testing geography, decrease associated costs, and increase efficiency of testing at scale compared to approaches utilizing conventional viral transport media.
Studies with clinical partners are ongoing to further evaluate the performance of the SAFER Sample kit. With the support of DxD Hub in verification and validation, quality management system (QMS), and regulatory registration, Lucence has received ISO13485:2016 certification for its QMS which controls the processes for the manufacture of the SAFER Sample Saliva Specimen Collection Kit.
About Lucence
Lucence is a precision oncology company that makes state-of-the-art, highly sensitive liquid biopsy tests for disease detection and treatment selection. Lucence is headquartered in Palo Alto and Singapore, and its services are delivered worldwide through an accredited central laboratory. Visit www.lucence.com for more information.
About the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR)
The Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) is Singapore's lead public sector R&D agency, spearheading economic-oriented research to advance scientific discovery and develop innovative technology. Through open innovation, we collaborate with our partners in both the public and private sectors to benefit society. As a Science and Technology Organisation, A*STAR bridges the gap between academia and industry. Our research creates economic growth and jobs for Singapore, and enhances lives by contributing to societal benefits such as improving outcomes in healthcare, urban living, and sustainability. We play a key role in nurturing and developing a diversity of talent and leaders in our Agency and research entities, the wider research community and industry. A*STAR’s R&D activities span biomedical sciences and physical sciences and engineering, with research entities primarily located in Biopolis and Fusionopolis. For ongoing news, visit www.a-star.edu.sg. For information on the Diagnostics Development (DxD) Hub, visit https://www.a-star.edu.sg/accelerate/innovation-offerings/diagnostics-development-hub
Follow us on Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram | YouTube
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200616005320/en/
Contact information
Lucence Media Contact
Gabriel Yap
media@lucence.com
A*STAR Media Contact
Ms. Lynn Hong
hongxl@hq.a-star.edu.sg
+65 6419 6597
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Bending Spoons S.p.A. announces pricing of initial public offering1.7.2026 02:56:00 EEST | Press release
Bending Spoons S.p.A. (“Bending Spoons”), a leading technology company, today announces the pricing of its initial public offering (“IPO”) at $29.00 per share. A total of 57,971,015 ordinary shares are being offered, of which 34,398,640 shares are being offered by Bending Spoons and 23,572,375 shares are being offered by certain selling shareholders (the “Selling Shareholders”). Bending Spoons will not receive any proceeds from any sale of shares by the Selling Shareholders. The shares are expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker symbol “BSP” on July 1, 2026. The offering is expected to close on July 2, 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. In addition, Bending Spoons and the Selling Shareholders granted the underwriters an option to purchase up to an additional 5,244,026 ordinary shares from Bending Spoons and up to an additional 3,451,626 ordinary shares from the Selling Shareholders at the initial public offering price, less underwriting
FDA Issues Modified Risk Tobacco Product Orders for 20 ZYN Nicotine Pouch Products30.6.2026 19:19:00 EEST | Press release
Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) (NYSE: PM) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued Modified Risk Tobacco Product (MRTP) orders for 20 variants of ZYN nicotine pouch products. These are the first MRTP orders granted for nicotine pouches, allowing PMI U.S. to market the following claim for the authorized ZYN products: “Using ZYN instead of cigarettes puts you at a lower risk of mouth cancer, heart disease, lung cancer, stroke, emphysema, and chronic bronchitis.” “FDA’s decision is an important moment for the more than 45 million legal-age nicotine consumers in America,” saidStacey Kennedy, PMI U.S. CEO. “Today’s news ensures these adultshave access to accurate, science-based information, including FDA-authorized evidence that switching from cigarettes to ZYN reduces the risk of smoking-related diseases like heart disease and lung cancer,” she added. “More broadly, it reinforces the agency’s science-based approach to evaluating products across the co
Caidya Announces Strategic Combination with Simbec-Orion Bridging Early Scientific Insight and Global Clinical Execution30.6.2026 18:00:00 EEST | Press release
Caidya today announced a strategic combination with Simbec-Orion designed to close the divide between early scientific insight and global clinical execution. The combination of Caidya and Simbec-Orion creates a differentiated specialty clinical CRO platform that enables programs to scale, maintaining focus, speed, and accountability. The strategic combination brings together complementary strengths to create a more complete development partner for innovative biopharma companies. With established operations across Europe, the Americas, APAC, and China, the combined organization provides meaningful expertise and execution capabilities in the regions that matter most. Simbec-Orion brings early-phase clinical pharmacology capabilities alongside deep therapeutic expertise for later stage complex oncology and rare disease trials, helping sponsors shape critical decisions early in the development lifecycle. Together, the organizations strengthen their ability to support complex, cross-border
Archer® Proves Purpose-Built AI Beats General-Purpose LLMs on Regulatory Change Management: 95% Verified Accuracy, 80x Faster, 92% Lower Cost30.6.2026 17:13:00 EEST | Press release
For enterprises deploying AI in compliance, a wrong date is a missed deadline. The more dangerous failure is a wrong answer the model returns with high confidence, one that flows silently into a compliance calendar and is only discovered after the window has passed. Archer® today released results showing purpose-built AI beats a general-purpose large language model (LLM) on regulatory work, and it’s not close. This head-to-head test compared Archer’s purpose-built, vertical-specific AI and proprietary data sets against a leading general-purpose LLM, on a core compliance task: determining the publication, effective and comment-close dates of regulatory documents across six jurisdictions. General-purpose models are a genuine breakthrough, and this is no referendum on their quality. The question Archer set out to answer is narrower and more practical: what it takes to make a specific, high-stakes determination reliable, fast and affordable at scale. A vertical, domain-focused process, gro
Altasciences Supports Key Development Milestone for Steel Therapeutics’ Lead Therapeutic Candidate, Fizurex™30.6.2026 17:08:00 EEST | Press release
Altasciences, a leading drug development organization, today announced a significant milestone in the development of Steel Therapeutics, Inc.’s pivotal toxicology study for its lead product candidate, Fizurex™, for the treatment of anal fissures. The successful completion of the study plays a significant role in the advancement of Fizurex™ toward first-in-human trials. The GLP-compliant study demonstrated a favorable safety profile, which has advanced Steel Therapeutics' plans to submit an Investigational New Drug (IND) application for Fizurex™ to the FDA in Q3 2026. Fizurex™, a patent-pending, single-use topical wipe, was designed to provide a standardized, accessible treatment option for a painful and often undertreated medical condition. The product builds on years of use through compounding pharmacy prescriptions and is now advancing toward clinical development and regulatory review. "We are proud to have supported Steel Therapeutics with the generation of the high-quality safety d
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom