GT Molecular Awarded CDC Contract to Develop dPCR Wastewater Assays

NEW YORK – GT Molecular announced Friday that it has been awarded a contract from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to develop digital PCR assays for wastewater surveillance. The multiplex, multi-pathogen assays will be developed for the National Wastewater Surveillance System (NWSS) division of the CDC.

The contract could be worth up to approximately $1.7 million over five years, according to websites that monitor federal funding, and includes a 12-month base period and four 12-month option periods.

GT Molecular was previously awarded an NWSS dPCR assay development contract in 2023. That contract involved developing up to 28 assays on the Bio-Rad Laboratories QX series and Qiagen QiAcuity instruments.

Specifically, the prior contract was for development of assays for 24 infectious disease and antimicrobial resistance targets, two fecal indicators, and two process controls. The assays were intended to track SARS-CoV-2 variants, bacteria, viruses, parasites, fungi, disease vectors, and determinants of antibiotic resistance.

According to a Request for Proposals issued by the CDC, the new contract requires production and provision of multi-pathogen, multi-platform digital PCR assays for validation testing at the CDC and up to five public health partner laboratories.

Under the new contract, GT Molecular will develop up to 30 multi-pathogen dPCR assays. The identity of the additional two assays or targets was not disclosed. Also, in addition to dPCR instruments from Bio-Rad and Qiagen, the Fort Collins, Colorado-based firm will also develop assays on the Roche Digital LightCycler system.

The contract further stipulates an optional task of developing assays for the Applied Biosystems QuantStudio Absolute Q digital PCR instrument, as well as an optional task of sequencing primer design and development.