Research at the University of Minnesota led to the recent launch of a company marketing a new test for chronic wasting disease in cervids, like deer and elk.
University of Minnesota researchers didn't create the RT-QuIC test, but they used the technology to develop a less invasive CWD test using muscle tissue or skin.
Pronounced ‘R-T-quick’, the test makes testing of live animals possible.
Current testing using federally-approved tests can be done only if animals die or are killed, and lymph nodes or brain matter is removed for testing to verify the disease. That means captive deer often aren’t tested until they die or show symptoms of the disease, and that’s often too late to stop the spread of the disease. | 
