First-Ever T Cell-Based Test to Detect Prior SARS-CoV-2 Infection Receives FDA Emergency Use Authorization

The first and only clinical T cell-based test for patients to detect the unique T-cell signature specific to SARS-CoV-2 has been granted Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Adaptive Biotechnologies Corporation (Seattle, WA, USA) has received FDA EUA for T-Detect COVID to confirm recent or prior COVID-19 infection. T-Detect is a highly sensitive and specific diagnostic test under development for multiple diseases, translating the natural diagnostic capability of T cells into clinical practice. This first-in-class T cell- based test is the first indication resulting from Adaptive’s TCR-Antigen Map collaboration with Microsoft Corp. (Albuquerque, NM, USA). Adaptive and Microsoft have partnered to build a map of the immune system called the TCR-Antigen Map. This approach uses immunosequencing, proprietary computational modeling, and machine learning to map T-cell receptor sequences to disease-associated antigens for infectious diseases, autoimmune disorders and cancer. From a simple blood draw, T-Detect will leverage the map to provide an immunostatus for an individual, enabling early disease diagnosis, disease monitoring, and critical insights into immunity. The EUA was based on a clinical validation study showing that T-Detect COVID demonstrated sensitivity of 97.1% from date of diagnosis using RT-PCR and also showed a specificity of 100%.


“We are proud to receive FDA Emergency Use Authorization for T-Detect COVID, the first indication in an entirely new class of tests that use T cells in the blood to detect disease. People who have been unsure about a prior infection will now have another way to know if they had the virus,” said Chad Robins, chief executive officer of Adaptive Biotechnologies. “The authorization of T-Detect COVID represents a true breakthrough for patients and a pivotal milestone for the diagnostic testing paradigm. We have proven that it is possible to read how T cells detect disease in the blood, and this is just the beginning of a pipeline of tests for many other indications.”

“This is the first commercially available T-cell test that confirms recent or prior SARS-CoV-2 infections in people. T-Detect is accurate and what I find especially remarkable is how rapidly it was developed. Going from the lab to real-world human impact in a matter of months demonstrates the true value of our collaboration and the power of merging biology with cloud-scale machine learning technology,” said Peter Lee, corporate vice president, Research & Incubations, Microsoft. “We are hopeful that this technology will have a meaningful impact not only in the global fight against COVID-19, but in many other disease areas in the future.”

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Adaptive Biotechnologies Corporation
Microsoft Corp.