Coronavirus Test from a Suitcase
Mobile laboratory for rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 for Africa
The PCR test is the most accurate tool to identify SARS-CoV-2. However, valid results are often available only after days. Moreover, the laboratory must be well equipped, have trained personnel and sufficient financial resources. All of this is usually a problem in Africa. A portable suitcase could help. In cooperation with several African universities, scientists at Leipzig University have found that this mini-laboratory provides test results that are almost as good as a PCR test – and almost in real time. The researchers have now published their findings in the journal “Analytical Chemistry.”
The compact case could provide rapid coronavirus test results in regions of Africa where testing facilities and medical infrastructure fall far short of European standards. The case is a small, mobile laboratory equipped with a diagnostic device, solar power supply, various reagents, some reference RNA extracts and rubber gloves. “With this tool, a so-called RPA test can be done directly on site, even in the most remote areas. It takes only 15 minutes to get a result,” said virologist Dr Ahmed Abd El Wahed from the Institute of Animal Hygiene and Veterinary Public Health, who is leading the study at Leipzig University.
Infected people can thus be identified and isolated more quickly. This is an important and life-saving measure in countries that may have to wait a long time for vaccines, and will contribute to bringing the COVID-19 pandemic under control. In the first study at Leipzig University, genome analysis (RPA method, recombinase polymerase amplification) was used to detect an infection with SARS-CoV-2 almost in real time, with an accuracy of 94 per cent. Dr Abd El Wahed explained the mobile lab’s simplicity: “A saliva sample or a nasal swab is sufficient for the test and all reagents can be used at room temperature.”
Suitcase lab already a success against Ebola
The method that will now be used to conduct coronavirus testing has already been successfully evaluated for several other infectious diseases, for example in Guinea in 2015, during the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. For COVID-19 diagnosis, the mobile suitcase lab has already been implemented in Egypt, Ghana, and Senegal, as well as in five other African countries: the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Madagascar, Nigeria, Sudan, and Uganda. Results will now be evaluated in further studies.
Specifically, the exact performance of the developed SARS-CoV-2 RPA assays will be determined and compared to PCR assays. If the results are comparable, as the preliminary data seem to suggest, the suitcase laboratory could soon be increasingly used in the clinical field to determine SARS-CoV-2. In addition to existing agreements with companies in China, the US and Germany for the production of the mobile lab, the project also seeks a manufacturer in Africa.
The study is receiving 500,000 euros in funding from the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) and will run until September 2021. Funded by the European Union, the EDCTP is a public partnership between countries in Europe and sub-Saharan Africa. It aims to accelerate the clinical development of new or improved drugs for the identification, treatment and prevention of poverty-related infectious diseases.
Text: Ronny Arnold
Translation: Matthew Rockey
Wissenschaftliche Ansprechpartner:
Dr. Ahmed Abd El Wahed
ahmed.abd_el_wahed@uni-leipzig.de
Originalpublikation:
Publication in Analytical Chemistry:
Suitcase Lab for Rapid Detection of SARS-CoV-2 Based on Recombinase Polymerase Amplification Assay, https://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.0c04779
Media Contact
All latest news from the category: Medical Engineering
The development of medical equipment, products and technical procedures is characterized by high research and development costs in a variety of fields related to the study of human medicine.
innovations-report provides informative and stimulating reports and articles on topics ranging from imaging processes, cell and tissue techniques, optical techniques, implants, orthopedic aids, clinical and medical office equipment, dialysis systems and x-ray/radiation monitoring devices to endoscopy, ultrasound, surgical techniques, and dental materials.
Newest articles
Porous Crystals Detect Nitric Oxide
Ultrasensitive detection of nitric oxide (NO) using a conductive 2D metal-organic framework. In an era where environmental monitoring and medical diagnostics are increasingly crucial, the ability to detect specific gases…
Accelerating 5G & 6G Applications
Fraunhofer HHI and Partners Launch First Open-Source 5G FR2 MIMO Demonstrator. Fraunhofer Heinrich-Hertz-Institut (HHI) and its partners, Allbesmart, National Instruments (NI), and TMYTEK, have unveiled the world’s first open-source 5G…
High Efficiency Meets Sustainability
Fraunhofer Lighthouse Project Shows Way for Next-Generation Tandem Solar Cells. The development of perovskite-silicon tandem solar cells made of stable materials and manufactured using scalable production processes is the basis…