Rhinostics launched its ELEstic swab collection device combined with the ELEbot Decapper. The ELEstic includes a swab attached to a cap that screws into a 75mm by 13mm tube, the diagnostic industry standard that fits into most of the larger closed molecular testing platforms. The ELEbot Decapper provides 24-tube automated decapping of swab samples that can be placed upstream of these molecular testing platforms for sample elution and decapping prior to transferring the sample directly into the diagnostics testing system.
The ELEstic joins the company’s platform of proprietary collection devices, including the 96-well RHINOstic/RHINObot system. Both systems integrate a unique, polypropylene swab with an automatable cap. After a patient sample is collected, the swab is placed into a collection tube for dry shipment, bypassing the need for transport media to reduce sample loss during transport and accidental biohazard contact. This feature also enables more rapid and complete elution for increasing sample concentration to drop Limits of Detection (LOD) for many assays; can remove extraction steps; and reduces reagent usage. Both the ELEstic and RHINOstic systems offer significant cost reductions to laboratory workflows through labor and reagent savings.
The ELEbot Decapper automates decapping and capping of the ELEstic in 75mm by 13mm tubes in 24-tube racks. This speeds sample processing and allows more samples to be processed in the same footprint with a smaller staff, in the first completely handsfree swab workflow, lowering dependency on labor and dropping these costs significantly.
The ELEstic employs the proven stacked-ring head, developed at the Wyss Institute, with a successful track record testing millions of COVID-19 patient and medically collected samples. Additionally, laboratories have begun using the swabs for multi-analyte respiratory testing, vaginal and triple-site collection for sexually transmitted infections (STIs), wounds, and other swab sample types.
