From April 20th to 21st, the International Health Industry Forum of Boao Forum for Asia was held in Beijing, China. The event brought together decision-makers, healthcare providers, experts, and investors to promote global innovation and development in healthcare. The Founder of Pluslife Biotech, Prof. SONGYANG Zhou spoke on the panel “Diagnostic Companies and How They Engage with Global Public Health” to share ideas on how Next-Generation Molecular POCT (point-of-care testing) shaping the healthcare environment in LMICs (Low- and Middle-Income Countries). The CEO of Pluslife Biotech, Mr. CHEN Chong, was also invited as a special guest to the forum.

The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the importance of medical technology innovations and synergies of worldwide diagnostic companies. “In recent years, more and more Chinese diagnostic companies become involved in global health, China-made innovations are accepted in the US, Europe, and many other top-end markets, making solid contributions in the fight against COVID-19,” commented Pluslife Biotech Founder Prof. SONGYANG Zhou, ”Although qPCR tests had been widely used in COVID-19 control and prevention, I see a great future in Molecular POCT, because it can solve the issues of accessibility in LMICs for infectious diseases like HPV or TB.”

“To improve healthcare accessibility in LIMCs, our company invented a new technology called Molecular POCT, it is also a nucleic acid detection but the result is quick and intuitive, no lab required, it’s low cost, people can afford it, and it's portable. By collaborating with FIND and WHO, we hope to expand and scale up our products, and quickly make them available to LMICs and benefit the people there.”

As Prof. SONGYANG Zhou elaborated, “Thanks to FIND and the Boao Forum, today we can talk with each other in finding common ground to collaborate. The collaboration with FIND, WHO helps us to understand the markets from a deeper perspective. For example, in Africa, people sometimes even don’t have the access to electricity. Molecular POCT comes with an external charging solution that can help them to get nucleic acid detection results instantly, in as little as seven minutes.”

Chinese diagnostic companies made significant contributions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their products demonstrate comparable performance to leading diagnostic organizations and can meet growing demands in LMICs due to strong supply chain efficiency. Pluslife Biotech specializes in handheld molecular POCT analyzers with comparable performance to qPCR. In comparison to similar products, the Pluslife Mini Dock analyzer is smaller in size with a high degree of flexibility to be used in non-laboratory environments. With its reusable feature in analyzers and no cold chain storage required in test cards, Pluslife products are cost-effective for large-scale deployment in LMICs.

(Image: Pluslife Mini Dock, Test Card and Smart Charging Station)

Another molecular POCT analyzer, the Pluslife Dock Pro 8 was introduced to the industry this year as the latest breakthrough. Using the Pluslife Dock Pro 8, medical providers can perform one to eight tests simultaneously with integrated functions such as Test Item Auto-Identification, LIS Connections, Sample Scanning, Result Printing, and others.

(Image: Pluslife Dock Pro 8)

Pluslife Biotech is continuing its engagement with global public health by actively collaborating with international NGOs. To date, Pluslife has formed partnerships with FIND, PATH, and WHO to provide molecular POCT solutions for diseases like HPV, TB, and HCV that cause severe medical burdens around the world. The company’s goal is to improve healthcare delivery and outcomes, especially in resource-limited settings, by making molecular POCT more accessible and affordable.

About the International Health Industry Forum of Boao Forum for Asia

Established in 2001, the Boao Forum for Asia is a non-governmental and non-profit international conference organization. Since its inception, with a focus on Asia and a global perspective, the Boao Forum for Asia has been committed to promoting regional cooperation in Asia and common development across the world. Apart from traditional economic issues, the conference has been focusing on health issues closely related to economic development and people's well-being. For more information, please visit: https://en.ghfbfa.cn/ 

About FIND

FIND, the global alliance for diagnostics seeks to ensure equitable access to reliable diagnoses around the world. FIND connects countries and communities, funders, decision-makers, healthcare providers, and developers to spur diagnostic innovation and make testing an integral part of sustainable, resilient health systems. FIND is working to save 1 million lives through accessible, quality diagnosis, and save US$1 billion in healthcare costs to patients and health systems. FIND is a co-convener of the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator diagnostics pillar and a WHO Collaborating Centre for Laboratory Strengthening and Diagnostic Technology Evaluation. For more information, please visit: www.finddx.org

About Pluslife Biotech

Guangzhou Pluslife Biotech Co., Ltd. was established in 2017. The R&D team combines experienced and talented R&D personnel with more than 60% of them being certificated Ph. Ds or Masters. Pluslife team satisfies the need of applying cutting-edge genetic technologies to develop an innovative molecular POCT diagnostic system that provides complete and economic solutions to IVD users. Based on the self-developed isothermal molecular detection technology called RHAM, Pluslife's Molecular POCT detection system can be used in comprehensive application scenarios such as respiratory diseases, STD diseases, and animal diseases. For more information, please visit https://www.pluslife.com/