Trisomy: UK Yourgene Health introduces advanced testing in Morocco

UK Yourgene Health company (part of Novacyt group, a leader in molecular diagnostics, has launched the first non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) in Morocco at the Centre de Biologie Riad in Rabat.

By offering this advanced service, the Moroccan Laboratory can broaden its offering and provide pregnant women fast, reliable results that reduce the need for invasive tests and the associated stress and anxiety for expectant parents.

Yourgene’s IONA test is an advanced prenatal screening test to estimate the risk that a fetus may be affected with trisomy 21 (Down’s syndrome), trisomy 18 (Edwards’ syndrome) or trisomy 13 (Patau’s syndrome).

The test can also be used to determine the sex of the fetus. It is a complete CE-IVD product for laboratories wishing to offer their own in-house NIPT service. The analysis is performed on a maternal blood sample, using next-generation sequencing technology, with test results available in three days.

It has been validated on a highly flexible and scalable workflow, suitable for low- to high-volume sample throughput, enabling clinical laboratories to meet and grow with their rising demands.

Yourgene’s IONA test enables Laboriad become a local supplier of NIPT of the Manchester-based company in Morocco, and surrounding regions, broadening access to non-invasive testing in these areas.

The Moroccan Laboratory will also be able to deliver results quickly to expectant parents whose blood samples used to be sent overseas for such as tests, running the risk of failures due to shipping delays.

Lyn Rees, Executive Director, Yourgene Health, said his company is “committed to delivering best-in-class NIPT solutions and continues to be a leading player in the global NIPT market and a trusted provider. We are very proud to be the first to bring NIPT to Morocco through our partnership with Laboriad.”

“The establishment of the 1st NIPT platform in Morocco in collaboration with Yourgene Health, will improve the care of pregnant women in Morocco by giving gynaecologists and pregnant women rapid access to new generation NIPT,” said Dr Jalil Elattar, Director of Laboriad.