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Tag: National Research Council Canada

Topic: vaccinesView all posts for the topic: vaccines

Let’s put Montreal’s idle pharmaceutical plant to good use

Published November 28, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: Montreal Gazette
Published on:
By Adam R. Houston, Jason Nickerson

When COVID-19 first struck, Canada had a problem: It lacked domestic capacity to manufacture vaccines. Today, the government of Canada faces the opposite problem: It owns a factory that isn’t manufacturing vaccines.

The Biologics Manufacturing Centre (BMC) in Montreal was completed in 2021 at the cost of $126 million, and fully licensed by Health Canada in 2022. However, a 2021 deal with Novavax to produce their COVID-19 vaccine looks increasingly unlikely to produce a single dose. Indeed, despite annual operating costs around $17 million a year, the BMC has never produced anything.

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Topic: rapid testsView all posts for the topic: rapid tests

What are the most reliable rapid antigen tests?

Published May 6, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: newsGP
Published on:
By Michelle Wisbey

A new study has analysed 26 RATs from Australia and Canada, finding only six could effectively detect the lowest concentrations of COVID-19.

Patients across the globe have come to rely on rapid antigen tests (RATs) to confirm a COVID-19 diagnosis, but a new Australian study has revealed most are not producing accurate results.

Researchers from James Cook University (JCU) say they were left ‘shocked’ after an analysis of 26 RATs from Australia and Canada found just six were effective at detecting the lowest concentration of COVID-19.

One Canadian test failed to detect the COVID-19 protein entirely at any level of concentration.

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Topic: rapid testsView all posts for the topic: rapid tests

International study highlights best RATs

Published May 2, 2024

Still COVIDing Canada Posts

Published by: James Cook University
Published on:

A ground-breaking study by James Cook University researchers has produced damning findings on several COVID-19 Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) available in Australia and overseas.

The new joint study by JCU and National Research Council Canada analysed 16 RATs approved by Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) and 10 by Health Canada, using a JCU-developed COVID-19 protein and its Canadian counterpart as reference materials.

Out of the total 26 RATs compared, only six were found to be effective at detecting the lowest concentration of the COVID-19 reference proteins in the dilution series used for benchmarking.

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