DNAiTECH, the Supreme winner of the Cawthron Marlborough Environment Awards wowed a diverse audience of science and business leaders during their field day. The aspiring B Corp biotech company showcased its groundbreaking work, blending science and innovation.
Quilae Anthony, director of Programs and Aotearoa NZ, B Corp with DNAiTECH founders Dr Murray Broom and Tatiana Ceban in DNAiTECH’s laboratory during the Cawthron Marlborough Environment Awards Field Day.
Dr Murray Broom, CEO of DNAiTECH introduced his game-changing LAMP-CRISPR integrated microfluidic chip technology, which simplifies diagnostics in the field, using just a smartphone and paper. This real-time Point of Care (POC) diagnostic breakthrough has wide-ranging applications, from medicine to agritech.
Dr Murray Broom, CEO, DNAiTECH, introduces field day attendees to DNAiTECH’s game changing technology
To help us along, Murray contrast the traditional tools for diagnostic with POC diagnostics that we have all experienced during the Covid Pandemic. Recall the conventional PRC test, which required scientific analysis in a laboratory with a nail-biting wait time of two to three days for diagnostics to be confirmed. The rapid antigen test (Rats) by contrast, as we all know, is almost instant and can be carried out by almost anyone anywhere. RATS is a POC application. The principle of POC is saving time to provide effective treatment with the best possible outcome.
“The key difference between laboratory analysis and POC is time, crucial for timely treatment and better outcomes”, says Murray.
The DNAiTECH diagnostic test is based on a microfluidic test - on an environmentally friendly paper-based chip. The microfluidic chip offers fully protected chemistry and a cost-effective approach. The team uses LAMP-CRISPR integrated diagnostics to amplify signals so intensely that they are visible to the naked eye.
Environmentally friendly microfluidity technology using paper
Murray describes the development as a game-changer, with applications spanning biomedical, agritech, and environmental sectors. Currently, DNAiTECH is working projects related to American foulbrood disease funded by MPI and AGMARDT, biomedical diagnostics funded by Callaghan Innovation and diagnostic health assessment with Plant & Food Research Lincoln.
Murray says there is no shortage of applications for DNAiTECH’s technology.
The Supreme Award, jointly sponsored by the Marlborough Research Centre and Plant & Food Research, brought field day guests to MRC’s Budge Street theatre and Grovetown campus.
Learn more about DNAiTECH and their dedicated team, Dr Anandita Sen and Dr Calum Morris and their pioneering work and read the Cawthron Marlborough Environment Awards judges report here.
For further information contact
Dr Murray Broom, CEO, DNAiTECH, 021 429 962, dnaitech@gmail.com
Background
Founded during the Covid-19 pandemic, DNAiTECH established its presence at the Marlborough Research Centre Grovetown Campus in late 2020. This move to a proper laboratory facility accelerated technology development and secured multiple grants in 2021, including support from Callaghan Innovation, AGMARDT, and Auckland Council in 2022. DNAiTECH's technology is centered on rapid point-of-care (POC) diagnostics using isothermal DNA amplification. Their applications span Agritech, biomedicine, environmental studies, and secondary education, with the first Agritech application targeting American foulbrood disease (AFB).