A unique test developed by a world-renowned expert that could cut down detection of COVID-19 to 20 minutes is published in the journal Scientific Reports. Coming down to the process, the test aims three viral genes to elevate its reliability. Earlier, to conduct the process, the lead researcher along with colleagues at Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford have developed an assay called Cov2-ID for quantitative polymerase chain reaction – a widely used test for the detection of infectious SARS-Cov-2 in human cells.
In fact, the test finds three viral targets. This makes it more reliable than other currently used tests to detect the virus which targets one or two, and was 100% accurate in almost 30 patients of a sample. Furthermore, the test also has the potential to find viral load, which refers to the amount of virus that is there in each patient.
As per observation, most of the samples that were taken in Essex contained the mutant genotype of the virus, while, sample taken from Australia contained another ‘wild type’ genotype.
Researchers develop Cov2-ID assay to conduct new COVID-19 test
Importantly, Cov2-ID has been developed keeping in mind MIQE guidelines created by the lead researcher in association with scientists across the world. Meanwhile the guidelines were issued to promote best practices of qPCR design and publication, to produce results that are fast, robust, and sensitive. In addition, the assay is designed to minimize the probability of a faulty negative outcomejavascript:void(0) which may lead patients to unintentionally infect other people.
Meanwhile, it is worth mentioning that the qPCR tests currently used in the UK typically return results between one and two hours. On the other hand, the testing process using Cov2-ID is both faster and simpler to conduct, and could potentially provide results while the patient waits at the testing site.
