Sign up for our daily Newsletter and stay up to date with all the latest news!

Subscribe I am already a subscriber

Sign up for our daily Newsletter and stay up to date with all the latest news!

Subscribe I am already a subscriber

Partnership to automate cannabis testing results, minimizing labor and inconsistencies

Medicinal Genomics Corp. (MGC) announced its partnership with UgenTec, which will add its FastFinder software to MGC’s microbial testing platform. FastFinder uses data science and Artificial Intelligence to minimize manual review of assay results through digitization of an assay’s interpretation logic. FastFinder Analysis automates the assay instructions for use, minimizing result turnaround time (TAT) by avoiding time-consuming and error-prone manual review.

UgenTec’ FastFinder technology has proven itself in thousands of labs running hundreds of millions of tests during the Covid pandemic. Moving into the cannabis industry is a natural extension for the company since both sectors utilize the same underlying molecular testing methodology, qPCR.

“We’re beyond excited to be able to offer this technology to our customers,” said Brendan McKernan, CEO of Medicinal Genomics. “Cannabis volumes are increasing every month, and labs are under increasing pressure to deliver more volume without sacrificing accuracy and cost-effectiveness. UgenTec’s FastFinder will be a game changer for them and for us.”

Adopting FastFinder allows labs to deliver optimal result consistency in several ways. First, it allows labs to optimize result calling. Labs can finetune and automate result calling to their liking and decide in what circumstances a result needs manual review. Second, FastFinder reduces manual steps in curve review and assay result reporting, reducing time to result significantly and optimizing lab efficiency. And third, it increases result consistency by eliminating possible variability among lab staff and by making interpretation rules explicit and automating them in software.

To keep up with this rapidly evolving industry, organizations doing cannabis testing have to add more robotics, automation, and process optimization. The increased complexity, along with growing volumes and expanding assay menus, have put more pressure on lab staff. Hiring competent lab personnel has proven difficult, and bringing new staff up to speed is time-consuming. For these reasons, automated systems that provide true sample-to-result workflows are essential to meet the demands of increased workloads, complexity, and demand.

“Cannabis testing must produce the highest accuracy while optimizing result turnaround times,” said Steven Verhoeven, CEO at UgenTec. “At UgenTec, we’re bringing together data science & AI, easy-to-use software, and smart instrument connectivity to offer diagnostic labs the software tools they need to ensure results are up to the highest standards. Medicinal Genomics and UgenTec share this ambition and vision on diagnostics, so we’re very pleased to bring this solution to the market together.”

For more information:
Medicinal Genomics
[email protected]  
medicinalgenomics.com

Publication date: