It’s been more than a year since COVID-19 initially smacked humanity and as BioWorld’s senior analyst, Karen Carey, detailed in early February, vaccine and therapeutic R&D continues to move furiously forward. Variants have added a new twist in the race to gain global control of the virus. But what about tests and surveillance? Are these medical technologies keeping pace with the rapidly changing virus? BioWorld MedTech takes a deep dive in today’s edition.

• Staff Writer Meg Bryant looks for answers on whether current tests are effective when it comes to the variants and how the test makers are adapting.
• Staff Writer Annette Boyle explores how industry and universities united to scale up surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 variants.
• Senior Science Editor Anette Breindl explains why mutations in SARS-CoV-2 are at once a challenge, a fact of life and an opportunity.
• Regulatory Editor Mark McCarty highlights how governments are being challenged with keeping track of mutations while simultaneously validating new and revamped existing tests.