"Stable Domestic Supply... Europe and Middle East Seek Korean COVID-19 Test Kits"

Yoo Jae-hyung, CEO of Solgent

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghoon Jung] "The supply of domestic diagnostic reagents is stable. Production volume is sufficient to allow exports, and we are receiving continuous requests from Europe and the Middle East, where the number of patients is rapidly increasing."

Yoo Jae-hyung, CEO of Solgent, a developer of diagnostic reagents for the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), said in an interview with Asia Economy on the 6th, "We have secured enough domestic supply of diagnostic kits and reagents." Thanks to the proactive development of diagnostic reagents in Korea, export routes have opened.

On the 27th of last month, Solgent received emergency use approval from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency for the kit product including diagnostic reagents called 'DiaplexQ Novel Coronavirus.' On the 29th of the same month, the same product also obtained European certification. This kit can simultaneously detect two coronavirus genes extracted within two hours.

COVID-19 diagnostic reagents are broadly divided into two types. One is the 'gene extraction reagent,' which extracts viral genes from secretions obtained through specimen collection, and the other is the 'gene testing reagent,' which amplifies the extracted minute viral genes for testing. Solgent is developing the gene testing reagent. CEO Yoo emphasized, "Because viral genes are in extremely small amounts, the technology lies in amplifying them to a detectable level," adding, "Solgent is the only company that directly produces the gene amplification enzyme, which is the core of the testing reagent." He also added, "The genes used by Solgent for testing are globally recognized for their sensitivity and accuracy."

Solgent produces diagnostic kits and reagents for MERS, Zika, norovirus, and others. Having received European certification (CE), it exports to more than 27 countries. Based on this technology, it also developed COVID-19 diagnostic technology. CEO Yoo said, "Including myself, four researchers and two approval personnel, seven people in total, completed the development in about a month," and evaluated, "This was the result of dedicating more than 16 hours a day to research, even giving up weekends."

Along with Solgent, four domestic diagnostic reagent manufacturers can supply COVID-19 diagnostic reagents for 400,000 people per week. Besides these manufacturers, about 30 companies have completed development of diagnostic kits and reagents and have applied to the government for emergency use approval. With the global pharmaceutical company Roche's reagent supply proceeding without disruption and sufficient quantities from domestic companies, CEO Yoo believes the supply issue has been completely resolved.

CEO Yoo said, "Solgent has a mass production system capable of diagnosing more than 20,000 people per day," and added, "As COVID-19 enters a global pandemic, we will actively export to protect public health in other countries."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.