Japanese discovery promises to revolutionize Covid-19 detection
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A group of Japanese researchers have made a discovery that promises to revolutionize the detection of Covid-19. We are talking about the development of masks that glow when exposed to ultraviolet light when traces of the SARS-CoV-2 virus are detected.
According to scientists from Kyoto Provincial University, cited by Kyodo News, this innovation is possible using antibodies isolated from ostrich eggs – animals that, according to the same scientists, are capable of producing several different types of antibodies or proteins that neutralize unknown organisms in the body. …
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“We can mass produce ostrich antibodies at a low cost. In the future, I want to turn this into a test kit that everyone can use, ”said Yasuhiro Tsukamoto, the team’s project leader.
Last February, the team injected an “inactivated form” of coronavirus inside an ostrich, a surgery that scientists say was a success as it ended up extracting large amounts of antibodies from ostrich eggs.
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With this discovery, the team moved on to the next step: developing a special filter that fits inside the face masks, which can be removed and sprayed with a fluorescent dye containing antibodies from ostrich eggs.
When the researchers conducted a 10-day trial involving 32 volunteers infected with covid-19, they found that all participants’ masks glowed under ultraviolet light, which then faded over time as the viral load dropped.
The team of scientists now intends to expand the trials to 150 participants, awaiting government approval to sell the appropriate masks as early as next year.
The dean of the university himself discovered that he had covid-19 while wearing one of these masks, and later confirmed the result with a PCR test.
