In Turkey, scientists at Bilkent University claim to have developed an ultra-rapid coronavirus test that doesn’t require nasal swabs. They state that the test can return results within 10 seconds and has 99% accuracy. The Diagnovir is a diagnostic kit that uses nanotechnology to detect Covid-19 in a patient.
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A swab is taken from the patient’s mouth and then mixed with a solution, ultimately to be added to a pathogen detection chip. “It detects the presence of pathogens with high accuracy by receiving a fluorescent signal,” said Ali Aytac Seyman, a researcher at the National Nanotechnology Research Centre (UNAM).
As opposed to the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test, the Diagnovir “focuses on the existence or non-existence of the virus using advanced optical methods.” If the test result is positive, it is shown within 5-10 seconds as opposed to up to 20 seconds if the result is negative.
As this test needs only an oral sample, it is painless compared to the PCR test, which requires a nasal swab. Virus proteins are linked to the device, and it emits optical signals to identify whether a person is Covid-positive or not.
“Finding out rapidly that a person is [COVID-19] positive to then quarantine them is very important to bring the pandemic under control,” Bilkent University Rector Abdullah Atalar told Anadolu Agency. He further suggested that similar technology could be used in detecting other coronaviruses.
Other experts are using nanotechnology worldwide to develop their own rapid tests for covid-19. “The coronavirus is a particle with a diameter of 150 nanometres,” said Atalar, who added that UNAM researchers had been working on nanoparticles for years. “This is exactly their field of expertise. After the first cases were reported in Turkey, they started working on the project.”
