Mirimus' Saliva-Based Pooled COVID-19 Testing Key to Ensuring Safe Environment During "Bubbleville" NCAA Division I Basketball Event at Mohegan Sun

BROOKLYN, N.Y., Dec. 9, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Mirimus, Inc., a leader in the field of PCR testing, today announced that its pioneering SalivaClear COVID-19 pooled saliva testing platform was successfully utilized during the recently completed "Bubbleville" college basketball competition at the Mohegan Sun Resort in Uncasville, CT. The event featured 26 games and 25 NCAA Division I men's and women's basketball teams competing over 10 days during which Bubbleville organizers implemented a strict and frequent COVID-19 surveillance regimen that involved all players, coaches, staff and event personnel being tested multiple times throughout the event.

Critical to this testing protocol was Mirimus' SalivaClear platform, which is composed of three key elements – saliva-based sampling, pooled testing and gold-standard PCR molecular diagnostics – that, when combined, enable frequent, high-quality, high-throughput, low-cost detection of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Mirimus' SalivaClear was used to perform 1,967 COVID-19 tests on 925 individuals during the 10-day Bubbleville event.

"An event of this scale involving thousands of people congregating in a single location is daunting under normal circumstances, but against the backdrop of COVID-19, represents a Herculean undertaking," said Prem Premsrirut, M.D., Ph.D., Co-founder and CEO of Mirimus. "However, Mirimus was eager to participate because, in our view, Bubbleville represented a perfect venue for the value proposition that SalivaClear offers, namely the ability to provide a highly effective, efficient and cost-effective solution to COVID-19 surveillance testing."

During Bubbleville, each individual was required to provide a saliva sample from which a small volume of saliva (200 microliters) was extracted and combined with other individual samples to create a single, "pooled" specimen for analysis.  A surveillance test was then performed on the entire pool rather than each individual, substantially increasing the testing efficiency and enabling a 24-hour turnaround. SalivaClear is designed to accommodate up to 24 individual samples in a single pool, which for Bubbleville allowed each team to form its own testing pool (Bubbleville personnel and media were randomly assigned to testing pools). 

Dr. Premsrirut continued, "Saliva-based sampling is simple, safe and noninvasive, and is just as effective as testing nasal pharyngeal swabs, according to studies conducted by Yale University. Unlike intranasal swabs or blood samples, saliva samples can be easily and painlessly self-collected without the need for needles, nose swabs or medical personnel. Pooled testing typically entails combining a small volume of saliva from up to 24 individual samples to create a single specimen for analysis. If the initial surveillance test detects a positive signal, then the pool is narrowed into 12 subpools of two that are each retested at the laboratory. A diagnostic test then pinpoints the positive individual or individuals. By doing so, we can quickly identify and isolate hotspots before they can become outbreaks."

"Mirimus' SalivaClear pool testing platform played an invaluable role in the success of the Bubbleville tournament," said Greg Procino, Vice President of Basketball Operations for Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. "From the earliest planning stage, we recognized that active and diligent COVID-19 surveillance would be necessary to ensure the safety of all involved, and over the course of our event SalivaClear proved to be extremely effective."

About "Bubbleville"
Bubbleville comprised several college basketball events relocated and reimagined due to COVID-19, providing a controlled environment with teams and event staff adhering to tribal, government, and NCAA health and safety protocols and testing requirements. The event featured 27 games in 11 days, showcasing 25 NCAA Division I men's and women's teams. The schedule was headlined by several preseason ranked squads including #3 Villanova, #4 Virginia, and #18 Arizona State for the men and #5 Louisville and #20 DePaul for the women. Events at Bubbleville included the Roman Legends Classic presented by Old Trapper, the 2K Empire Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project presented by Continental Tire, the Air Force Reserve Tip-Off Tournament, the Jimmy V Women's Challenge and several pods and single game contests developed specifically for Bubbleville.

About SalivaClear
SalivaClear, developed by Mirimus, Inc., is a pioneering COVID-19 testing platform that combines saliva-based sampling, pooled testing and PCR diagnostics to enable high-quality, high-throughput, low-cost detection of SARS-CoV-2. SalivaClear is designed to accomplish what other COVID-19 testing approaches have thus far been unable to achieve – providing a SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic system that can be easily and repeatedly utilized by myriad organizations, from schools to businesses to government organizations, to test (and retest) groups of individuals in order to quickly isolate COVID-19 hotspots before they can become outbreaks. For more information, please visit www.salivaclear.com.

About Mirimus, Inc.
Mirimus, Inc., a leader in the field of PCR testing, has innovated COVID-19 surveillance PCR testing with the SalivaClear platform. SalivaClear is composed of three key elements – saliva-based sampling, pooled testing and gold-standard PCR molecular diagnostics – that, when combined, enable high-quality, high-throughput, low-cost detection of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. SalivaClear is simple, safe and noninvasive. Saliva samples can be easily and painlessly self-collected, and do not require medical personnel to collect them, unlike intranasal swabs or blood samples. With 10 years of experience in conducting high-volume, complex and highly effective PCR testing, Mirimus' CLIA certified high-complexity laboratory is fully equipped to perform high-quality saliva-based PCR testing for SARS- CoV-2. Mirimus also synergizes RNAi and CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technologies to develop animal models to guide the development of safer, more effective therapeutics.

Media Contacts for Mirimus, Inc.:
Tiberend Strategic Advisors, Inc.
Johanna Bennett & Ingrid Mezo
[email protected] / 1-212-375-2686
[email protected] / 1-646-604-5150

Media Contacts for Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
Position Sports
Nicole Taylor
[email protected]

SOURCE Mirimus, Inc.