NEWS PHOTONICS
A corona test for the masses Dutch companies Lionix, Qurin and Surfix, along with public-private partnership Photondelta, have set out to unlock the potential of integrated photonics for corona testing. Their ultimate goal: a fast, reliable, yet inexpensive corona test. Paul van Gerven
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t’s considered the holy grail of medical diagnostics: point-of-care testing. A sample taken from the patient is tested on the spot, next to the hospital bed, in the general practitioner’s office or even at home, and within minutes the result is in. It’s convenient, in some cases life saving, and there’s no time-consuming and expensive lab work involved. Imagine what the availability of such a quick and reliable test for the SARS-CoV-2 virus (colloquially known as the coronavirus) would mean in the fight against the current pandemic. Developing such a test is exactly what three Dutch companies, co-financed and supported by public-private organization Photondelta (see sidebar “Photondelta’s growth strategy”), have set out to do. Combining Lionix International’s integrated photonics technology with Surfix’s nanocoatings and Qurin Diagnostics’ biomedical expertise, they aim to have SARSCoV-2 testing devices in doctors’ offices by the end of next year. The ultimate goal, however, is to make a test for the masses: a widely available, disposable test that only costs a few euros.
Top-notch
Before teaming up on corona, the companies were already working closely together: Lionix and Qurin last year acquired Surfix to accelerate their efforts to develop a photonic biochip for early cancer detection. The corona test will be based on the same underlying principle. In fact, this principle can be used to detect many different entities: 20
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not just viruses, but also DNA and RNA, proteins and other (bio)molecules. The partners fully intent to exploit that feature by developing not one, but two corona tests: one that tells if you have the disease and another that indicates whether you’ve had it.
Photondelta’s growth strategy
In broad strokes, the biochip works on the basis that the characteristics of light are altered when it passes through a waveguide that’s coated with ‘hooks’ for whatever is being tested for. If a sample solution is brought into contact with the waveguide
Photondelta was started in January 2019 to boost the emerging Dutch integrated-photonics industry. Its mission: to drive growth in terms of turnover (over 1 billion euros), resources (over 4,000 FTE) and number of participating companies (more than 25) by 2026. These goals are already very challenging considering the relatively limited time frame and resources, but on top of that, Photondelta has to operate in a double-trouble environment: an emerging new technology with (long-term) potential in likewise new emerging applications and markets. To face this complexity, Photondelta identified four key target markets: Medical Devices and Life Sciences, Datacom and Telecom, Infrastructure and Transportation, and Agriculture and Food. First, the organization performed a thorough analysis of relevant key trends, drivers and unmet needs by meeting with key prospective customers on a global level. Their unmet needs were then matched with the cluster’s current and future product and technological capabilities. This resulted, at the end of last year, in the identification and prioritization, based on growth potential, of a limited number of key areas where Photondelta has the potential to further build and expand its portfolio of promising and differentiating solutions and where to focus on to effectively and efficiently target growth. One of these focal areas covers optical biosensing components and modules/subsystems for low-cost, accurate and fast detection of biomarkers in point-of-care diagnostics, an example of which is discussed in this article. Earlier this year, dedicated focal area teams, staffed with business and technology experts from companies and knowledge institutes or purposely hired (such as Maarten Buijs, interviewed here), have been set up and chartered to further sharpen relevant propositions and business/technology roadmaps, in an open collaboration with global leading customers and end-users. These insights will drive further expansion of the portfolio offering, acquisition of new customers and cluster partners, as well as guide further Photondelta investments.
