Hancom Healthcare Enters COVID-19 Neutralizing Antibody Diagnostic Kit Business

[Asia Economy Reporter Buaeri] Hancom Healthcare, a subsidiary of Hancom Group, is entering the diagnostic kit business.

On the 24th, Hancom Healthcare announced, "We are partnering with HB Healthcare to jointly develop and supply a neutralizing antibody diagnostic kit for COVID-19."

Neutralizing antibodies are one type of binding antibody produced when a virus invades the body. They prevent the virus from penetrating cells, defend against reinfection, and neutralize the virus. The industry regards them as a key indicator for assessing immunity against the COVID-19 virus.

While existing antibody diagnostic kits on the market can only confirm the presence of antibodies or infection history, neutralizing antibody diagnostic kits require relatively higher technology because they quantitatively analyze neutralizing antibodies to verify whether immunity has been formed.

The neutralizing antibody diagnostic kit 'HBelisa,' jointly developed by Hancom Healthcare and HB Healthcare, uses antigen proteins developed in-house as raw materials and is based on the ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) method, which diagnoses blood directly on the kit.

The company stated, "Diagnosis is possible with a small amount of blood, and the diagnostic time has been significantly reduced to within 90 minutes while maintaining the same accuracy of results. It can measure 90 samples simultaneously and quantitatively analyze the virus by ratio and value, making it a very useful product for virus research."

The two companies will begin supplying 'HBelisa' as a research product to vaccine developers, vaccine research institutes, and research organizations, and plan to expand domestic supply to hospitals, clinical sites, and vaccinated individuals after approval processes. They also plan to pursue exports targeting the European region.

Oh Byung-jin, CEO of Hancom Healthcare, said, "Starting with this neutralizing antibody diagnostic kit, we plan to secure a product lineup covering molecular, antigen, and antibody diagnostic areas." He added, "We will actively incorporate ICT technologies such as artificial intelligence and big data analysis possessed by Hancom Group and combine Hancom's strong brand recognition to establish a foothold for growth as a comprehensive healthcare company."

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