XWELL’s XpresCheck division has expanded its partnership with Ginkgo Bioworks to provide the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and its traveler-based Genomic Surveillance (TGS) program with onsite pathogen screening to Miami International (MIA) and Chicago O’Hare International (ORD).
Additional program funding and expanded program scope, which will double the CDC’s current investment in the TGS program, will be used to increase the volume of nasal and wastewater samples collected, tested, and sequenced using a custom multi-pathogen panel at MIA and ORD.
XpresCheck and Ginkgo Bioworks are now providing pathogen screening at nine U.S. airport locations. The CDC program, which was launched in 2021, continues to innovate in the space of pathogen genomics and biosecurity by introducing new collection modalities, launching in new locations, and refining the list of target pathogens to provide a clearer picture of what pathogens are circulating through the international travel system.
