“PERFECT”: NEW COVID TEST GIVES RESULTS WITHIN 4 MINUTES, CHINESE SCIENTISTS SAYS

Tue 08 February 2022:

Chinese researchers claim to have created a novel coronavirus test that is as accurate as a PCR lab test but takes only four minutes to complete.

Researchers from Shanghai’s Fudan University claim to have found a solution.

The most accurate and sensitive tests for the virus that causes Covid-19 are polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, but they usually take several hours.

Due to the rapid spread of the highly transmissible Omicron form, some countries have encountered serious backlogs in the face of increased testing demand.

The scientists claimed in a peer-reviewed article published Monday in the journal Nature Biomedical Engineering that their sensor, which analyzes genetic material from swabs using microelectronics, can reduce the need for time-consuming Covid lab testing.

“We implemented an electromechanical biosensor for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 into an integrated and portable prototype device, and show that it detected (virus RNA) in less than four minutes,” the team said in the paper, referring to the official name of the Covid pathogen.

The researchers claim that their method is quick, simple to use, sensitive, and portable.

The researchers took samples from 33 persons in Shanghai who had been infected with the coronavirus, and ran PCR assays in parallel.

According to the paper, the results of their procedure were a “perfect” match with the PCR testing.

The new method was tested on 54 samples, including those with fever who did not have the coronavirus, influenza patients, and healthy volunteers.

According to the team, there were no false positives in those cases.

The Fudan researchers said that once developed, their testing device can be used for quick testing in a variety of situations, including airports, health facilities and “even at home”.

PCR tests are not only slow, but they also require lab infrastructure that can be limited in many countries, reducing the number of cases that can be handled each day.

And while rapid diagnostic tests have now become available in many parts of the world, they are generally less accurate.

China is one of the largest producers of coronavirus test kits in the world.

It shipped $1.6 billion worth of test kits in December, up 144 percent from the previous month, according to customs data.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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