FLASH Diagnostics Co-Authors AI-Assisted Tick-Borne Pathogen Research at ISCAID
From October 14-16, 2024, we attended the International Society for Companion Animal Infectious Diseases Symposium: 2024, held in Vancouver. ISCAID is a globally recognized forum for the latest advancements in veterinary infectious diseases, drawing experts, clinicians, and researchers from all over the world.
During the event, research led by the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences at City University of Hong Kong was presented, showcasing an AI-assisted point-of-care nucleic acid testing platform for the detection of tick-borne pathogens like Babesia gibsoni and Ehrlichia canis. FLASH Diagnostics had the privilege of co-authoring this work, which was presented by Sihua Tan, alongside renowned infectious disease experts Prof. Vanessa R. Barrs and Prof. Paweł M. Bęczkowski, and FLASH’s co-founder Xiao Lu.
The platform demonstrated impressive capabilities:
- Rapid results (<25 minutes)
- Smartphone-powered incubator
- AI-driven result interpretation
- Sensitivity comparable to qPCR
The research demonstrates the potential of this technology to enable rapid and accurate diagnostics directly in the clinical setting—without needing to send samples to external labs.
During the symposium, our team had the opportunity to engage with hospital and laboratory directors, researchers, and professors from top institutions around the world. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, affirming that the future of veterinary diagnostics lies in accessible, real-time molecular testing.
We thank our collaborators at City University of Hong Kong for their leadership and vision, and ISCAID for organizing such a meaningful event. This project exemplifies the power of academic-industry collaboration, and we’re excited to continue supporting innovation that improves animal health and veterinary care around the world.
