While most consumers love picture-perfect, frosty buds, in cannabis, it’s often what you can’t see that can make all the difference.
In August, PathogenDx, a biotechnology company based in Scottsdale, Arizona, announced the launch of QuantX Bacterial, a four-in-one assay that “enables cannabis testing labs to efficiently meet any state’s microbial testing regulations.”
The company states that it provides analysis to total aerobic bacteria, bile-tolerant gram-negative bacteria, Enterobacteriaceae, and total coliforms on a single test, without needing separate tests for each type of bacteria. PathogenDx performs testing in industries ranging from healthcare to dairy farming to cannabis and states that its technology can detect and identify up to 50 pathogens in a single test simultaneously, without the need for petri dish testing.
PathogenDx Founder and CEO Milan Patel told Rootwurks that the company’s technology dramatically reduces testing turnaround, increasing efficiency for cannabis companies.
Patel said that the tests simultaneously search for dozens of targets like salmonella and Aspergillus saving time and money for cannabis companies.
“The beauty of this is that in cannabis, they’re asking you to test for six or seven pathogenic targets and you have to do them all separately. This costs money, time, labor, and effort.”
Patel said that “multiplexing” (testing for several things at the same time) sets the technology apart from other testing methods, and it can be performed on standard lab equipment. It can also be used for cannabis concentrates, gummies, and tinctures, not solely cannabis flower.
In addition, he said that the turnaround on the tests is usually the same day or during the same shift, as opposed to the 24 to 72 hours required by many competitors.
PathogenDx is currently partnered with more than 120 laboratories in 36 states, helping companies adhere to cannabis compliance demands.
Discussions about pathogens in cannabis typically focus on immunocompromised medical cannabis users or other customers who have a health condition that may put them at risk. Patel said that regulations are designed to address the risks faced by the most vulnerable people and the tests used by the industry must be capable of finding them.
Working during the pandemic
Patel said the testing kit is very similar to the PCR tests that have been used to detect COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. During the pandemic, the company developed a multiplexed viral diagnostic assay for detecting COVID-19, as well as a test for the rapid detection of COVID-19 variants and an environmental monitoring test for detecting COVID-19 on surfaces.
The company also received an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the Food and Drug Administration to use the DetectX-Rv tests to detect COVID-19. In addition, the company was able to use its DetectX-CV tests to detect multiple COVID-19 variants in a single test quickly and efficiently, in as little as 4 hours.
PathogenDx was one of a select few chosen to take part in Operation Warp Speed, the massive public-private partnership launched by the U.S. government during the pandemic to develop, manufacture, and distribute COVID-19 vaccines, diagnostics, and therapeutics. As part of the initiative, PathogenDx received funding to develop COVID-19 and variant testing.
Until the industry is federally legal
Patel said that the decision to develop cannabis testing technology was driven by the legal status of the plant.
“We realized that it would be easier to commercialize and show success in cannabis primarily because it was starting to get regulated at the state level. The assumption we made was that at least from a state level, it would be somewhat easier than getting approval [for the tests] from the FDA on the federal level.”
But the decision was also driven by the particulars of cannabis.
“We realized that cannabis has a lot more challenges from pathogens than even food or other industries.”
First off, the lack of federal legalization means that the testing requirements can vary from state to state, further complicating the process, according to Patel.
Patel said that while there are more outbreaks in the food industry, “you don’t have to look for many things, there are generally three bugs: Salmonella, E. coli, and Listeria. In cannabis, you’re looking for Salmonella, E. coli, and four different aspergillus species.”
He added that “there’s a lot more bugs that you need to test in cannabis versus food.”
He also stated that he believes that testing for listeria will eventually be the norm for cannabis edibles.
But if and when federal legalization becomes a reality, cannabis testing will still be centered on a mission that is far less complex than the science involved.
“It's really the application of technology in the area of human health and safety."
