The Covid pandemic brought the entire world to a standstill,
Though through Rapid testing,
vaccination levels have been on the rise, however does not solve the problem of identifying the different strains of Covid in a short period.
With so many covid tests now widely available,
you can easily test yourself while at home, But these tests don’t identify the variants.
As of now, only specialised abs can do variant covid tests, on a small sampling.
But that is soon to change, a while from now CRISPR-based miSherlock could detect specific SARS-Cov-2 variants in people- at home or any setting.
Created by Havard and MIT Researchers, the miSherock can identify different covid strains within an hour of testing.
In creating the new means of testing,
Rose Lee, MD, an infectious disease physician at Boston’s children’s hospital wanted an easier cost-effective way of identifying covid variants,
Which would help in identifying a suitable vaccine for the covid variant.
miSherlock (an acronym for Minimally instrumented specific high sensitivity enzymatic Unlocking) is a small battery device with two chambers.
Printing Your Tests Results
When the user spits into one chamber, it purifies and concentrates the viral RNA.
the second chamber performs amplification and detection,
And within an hour users can get their test results.
This device can be 3D printed, it’s amazing the application of 3d printing,
And how cost-effective it is to use.
Lee is one of four authors on the paper,
Played a vital role in creating the device and steps for processing user’s saliva, it also includes chem treatments to prevent false test results.
The application of 3d printing to covid testing will create affordable testing devices,
And the average home will be able to identify and get the appropriate vaccine for any covid variants, as results can be updated readily.
Lead on the research, Colins remarked on the flexibility and user-friendliness of the device.
With a growing number of variants of the covid strain on the rise,
A cost-effective and readily available means of identifying any strain is necessary for vaccination and miSherlock seems to be the next best thing in fighting covid.
The gadget is described in full detail in science advances.
