Although millions of COVID tests have been administered in the United States and beyond, a new diagnostic tool promises to deliver results faster than any existing test. According to the researchers, this new tool can help streamline mass testing, making it easier for people who need to be quarantined to do it in a timely manner. Read on to find out how you can find out if you have COVID faster than ever. And for more information about the latest research from COVID, Dr. Fauci has just published this alert about another new COVID strain.
In a January 4 preprint of a study published by medRxiv, researchers at the University of Birmingham in England announced the development of a new test medium for COVID that takes less than five minutes to detect the virus. Unlike previous testing methods for COVID, the test developed by researchers at the University of Birmingham uses only traditional laboratory equipment and does not require high temperature administration to the samples, like the PCR tests commonly used to detect the virus.
In a press release, Tim Dafforn, Ph.D., a professor at the University of Birmingham’s School of Biosciences, said the new test has “the inherent sensitivity of an RNA test”, but with significantly faster results. The new test “can be used on existing point of care devices and meets the need for testing in high-performance environments, close to the patient, where people may be waiting in line for their results,” explained Dafforn.
The rapid results provided by the new test, dubbed the Exponential Amplification Reaction (EXPAR), which collects single strands of DNA, can be promising in terms of not only mass testing, but also of controlling the pandemic more quickly, experts say. “Faster testing will allow us to unlock tests on nearby patients, getting people back to work safely and controlling outbreaks when they happen,” he said. Andrew Beggs, Ph.D., professor at the Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences at the University of Birmingham. However, mass vaccination will be an equally important piece of the puzzle in terms of keeping the pandemic in check – read on to find out which states are eliminating vaccination more slowly. And if you have already been diagnosed with coronavirus, if you have these 5 symptoms, you are at risk for long COVID.
Read the original article at Better life.