The E&M "Luca AI Cell Develops World's First Rapid Diagnostic Kit for Hepatitis D"

THE E&M announced on the 4th that its affiliate, Luca AI Cell, has collaborated with the Mongolian Onom Foundation Liver Specialty Center to develop the world's first rapid diagnostic kit for Hepatitis D.

Currently, there is no rapid diagnostic kit worldwide that can detect the Hepatitis D virus, and diagnosis is only possible through laboratory testing.

With the development of this kit, demand is expected to surge in countries with relatively high numbers of Hepatitis D virus-infected patients, such as Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkey. Until now, it has been difficult to develop diagnostic technology domestically due to the scarcity of Hepatitis D virus samples.

Luca AI Cell collaborated with the Mongolian Liver Specialty Center to secure virus specimens from patients infected with Hepatitis B and D viruses necessary for diagnostic validation, and then conducted clinical trials. According to the clinical trials, the kit demonstrated a sensitivity of 99% and a specificity of 100% for 200 specimens, and the results were presented at the International Liver Congress held in Italy last June.

This kit offers the advantages of being affordable and portable, enabling rapid response to the virus. The company also expects it to aid related research on the transmission routes and causes of hepatitis viruses.

The Hepatitis D virus is considered one of the most fatal viral chronic hepatitis types. This virus only infects individuals who are carriers of the Hepatitis B virus. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2022, the prevalence of Hepatitis B carriers in Mongolia was between 10% and 22% of the total population, and in 2016, approximately 7% to 10% of Uzbekistan's total population were carriers. Globally, about 254 million people were chronically infected with Hepatitis B in 2022, and a significant portion of them are predicted to be co-infected with the Hepatitis D virus.

Seunghee Ahn, CEO of Luca AI Cell, stated, “Mongolia has the highest liver cancer mortality rate in the world, with patients dying from liver cancer and cirrhosis accounting for 15% of all deaths annually.” He added, “Through this collaboration, we have scientifically validated our technology and hope to bring hope to hepatitis patients in Mongolia.”