CHE Alum Helps Develop COVID-19 Test

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Posted on April 2, 2020 by Greg Garrison

Greg Garrison

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An Auburn University graduate student played a key role helping a Birmingham company that brought a COVID-19 test from development to clinic in less than two weeks and has produced more than 12,000 coronavirus tests for use in Alabama and elsewhere.

Richard Cullum, an Auburn University doctoral candidate in chemical engineering who earned his bachelor’s degree at University of South Alabama, works for Assurance Scientific Laboratories in Birmingham as a member of the research and development team that created the test.

“My desire to create products that improve public health was a strong motivator for pursuing a Ph.D.,” Cullum said. “Seeing the impact of the COVID-19 test I helped develop has been extremely rewarding, especially so early in my career.”

Dr. Ty Thomas, lab director of Assurance Scientific, said today that through April 1, Assurance Scientific had completed 12,058 tests from Alabama and several other states and 502 of those were positive for COVID-19.

Assurance Scientific was one of the first 26 commercial labs in the United States approved by the FDA for COVID-19 testing.

“Our COVID-19 test uses real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to detect SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, in upper and lower respiratory specimens,” Cullum said.

“We’re relieved to see other commercial labs in the state and throughout the country now able to offer the testing and hope more will continue to come on board each day to help with the demand,” Thomas said.

“We have new machinery arriving daily and we are continually adding staff members,” said Dr. Chad Austin, co-founder of Assurance Scientific. “This will allow us to double our current capacity within the month to meet the overwhelming demand.”

Due to the laboratory’s Emergency Use Authorization agreement with the Food and Drug Administration, all specimen testing must be performed in Assurance’s in-house reference lab.

Cullum said his chemical engineering education helped him in designing and developing accurate and reproducible tests for pathogen detection.

“As a chemical engineering student, you learn to approach and solve problems at the reaction and process level,” he said. “The process development skills I learned enable me to optimally configure diagnostic tests for maximum throughput when implemented in clinical workflows.”

Assurance continues to provide tests for medical practices, hospitals and health systems throughout Alabama and across the country to run COVID-19 tests for patients and staff.

Assurance provided 2,216 tests for drive-through testing by Christ Health Center at the Church of the Highlands from March 17-22. Of those, 70 tested positive.

Assurance continues to provide COVID-19 testing for Christ Health Center, which has since set up isolation rooms at the Dream Center in Woodlawn, shifting to an emphasis on seeing patients who might otherwise not be able to visit a doctor’s office because of the fear of spreading coronavirus. Christ Health Clinic CEO Dr. Robert Record said the clinic can see 50 patients a day. Anyone who has had a recent fever or current cough can make an appointment by calling (205) 380-9455. The clinic at 5705 First Ave. North in Woodlawn accepts Medicaid, Medicare, commercial insurance and covers costs for uninsured patients, Record said.

“We are also doing stat testing for health care workers via Acton Quick Care (2868 Acton Road), which is located in the same building as the lab,” Dr. Ty Thomas of Assurance said today. “We need to get word out on that as that has many implications for keeping the hospitals and emergency rooms operational and not a source for spreading COVID and other prevalent infections in the community.”

University of South Alabama undergrad Alum and Auburn University graduate student Richard Cullum played a key role in developing a COVID-19 test that's been widely used in Alabama.   Article published in AL.com

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