LabCorp launches new neutralizing antibody test for Covid-19
The test, called the neutralizing antibody test, would be available to biopharmaceutical companies, hospitals, blood banks and other blood plasma-screening facilities
![The ultrastructural morphology exhibited by the 2019 Novel Coronavirus, which was identified as the cause of an outbreak of respiratory illness first detected in Wuhan, China, is seen in an illustration released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia, US January 29, 2020/Reuters](https://947631.windlasstrade-hk.tech/sites/default/files/styles/big_2/public/images/2020/02/03/coronavirus_reuters.jpg)
LabCorp said on Thursday it has launched a new test that could assess the capacity of antibodies in patient plasma to inhibit the novel coronavirus.
Information from the test about the virus-fighting ability of antibodies could be used in the development of Covid-19 vaccines, the company said.
The test, called the neutralizing antibody test, would be available to biopharmaceutical companies, hospitals, blood banks and other blood plasma-screening facilities.
Neutralizing antibodies are associated with protective immunity against re-infection for many infectious pathogens, according to the Mayo Clinic.
The test could be used in screening serum collected from recovered Covid-19 patients for preventive and therapeutic use, the company said.
The company made its Covid-19 tests available at workplaces last month and it also provides lab tests and antibody blood tests that can tell whether a person has ever been infected, as well as kits that allow people to mail in their own nasal swab samples collected at home.