NEW YORK ─ InnoVero on Tuesday announced a partnership with Tasso to become the exclusive worldwide distributor of Tasso blood collection devices for anti-doping testing.
Financial and other terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
The partnership between InnoVero and Tasso will ensure that blood collection protocols for anti-doping tests are followed accurately and consistently through the development of a security kit that utilizes noninvasive, dried-blood-spot sample collection, InnoVero said.
The security kit will ensure World Anti-Doping Agency compliance for dried blood-spot testing for doping control and improve the athlete testing experience, InnoVero said.
"Athletes have asked for alternatives to blood draws, while anti-doping organizations have struggled with alternative options that promote security and efficiency along with athlete safety," Gabe Baida, executive director of Colorado Springs, Colorado-based InnoVero, said in a statement.
InnoVero said its SafeSystem sample collection kit features security mechanisms that ensure its sample collection bottles are secure, athlete-friendly, and tamper-evident. Meanwhile, Tasso's devices are an alternative to traditional venipuncture blood draws. They enable the convenient collection of clinical grade blood for analysis.
In May, Tasso announced it had received CE marking for its Tasso-M20 self-sampling blood collection device designed for the at-home collection, storage, and transport of four dried blood samples for laboratory processing. Last July, the Seattle-based startup said it closed an oversubscribed $17 million Series A financing round.