AEGiS-Reuters: Trinity shares soar as HIV test gets U.S. approval

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Trinity shares soar as HIV test gets U.S. approval

Reuters NewMedia - December 29, 2003

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Shares of Trinity Biotech plc rose as much as 51 percent on Monday after it said it received U.S. regulatory approval to market its HIV test in the United States.

The Ireland-based company said the product, Uni-Gold Recombigen, is approved for the detection of antibodies to HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, in human serum, plasma or whole blood and that it is the first to be approved for use with all three sample types.

The company's shares rose $1.24 to $4.52 in early trading on Nasdaq. They rose as high as $4.95 at the open.

The company said Uni-Gold Recombigen, which is already used in Africa, requires only one step and produces a result within 10 minutes. Results from a conventional laboratory test can take hours or days. The test can be conducted in a doctor's office.

Government research and HIV programs have indicated that as many as 40 percent of those taking lab tests do not return for their results. The company said conversion of lab-based HIV tests to more rapid tests represents an annual market of about $30 million.

Trinity said it will market the product in the United States with its own sales force.

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