Hong Kong scientists have invented a mobile device that can detect corona virus within 40 minutes

A team of Hong Kong researchers said they have invented a device that can shorten corona virus detection time to 40 minutes.

Weijia Wen, a physics professor at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, says this is the fastest corona virus testing device available today, based on testing samples of body fluids of an suspect.

” The best thing about this device is its fast testing speed and high mobility,” said Professor Weijia. His equipment has now been used in two Chinese cities, and at least one is being sent to Hubei province, where the center of Wuhan is located.

” We send it to many places, and hope that everyone can use it, ” said Professor Weijia.

Hong Kong scientists have invented a mobile device that can detect corona virus within 40 minutes.

A major breakthrough was made by studies at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, amid an increase in the number of corona virus infections to more than 30,000, resulting in 635 deaths. Experts warn that China may fall short of testing equipment.

Recognizing this problem in the past, Professor Weijia and her colleagues at a startup laboratory in Shenzhen took advantage of the available resources to research a new corona virus test kit.

Currently, traditional laboratory equipment takes between 90 minutes and 3 hours to identify the corona virus. They all use a method called polymerase chain reaction (PCR), which requires a heating process to increase from 4-5 degrees Celsius per second.

The heated PCR method is also used by the Hong Kong Health Protection Center in current tests, and it takes about 3 hours to complete.

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Professor Weijia’s idea of ​​shortening the test time came from his thought that he could use another method to quickly raise the temperature to the required level. Accordingly, if he can heat at 30 degrees Celsius per second, the time to detect viruses will be reduced from 3 hours to 40 minutes.

And Professor Weijia began testing it, upon receiving a new sample of the corona virus sent from the China Disease Control Center in Beijing on January 20.

Before that, he had also built equipment to detect swine flu and bird flu. So the extra work is just improving them to detect new corona viruses.

Gao Yibo, a visiting professor working on the project, said the device is compact in size. It is only 33cm long, 32cm wide and 16cm high. The machine produces high-precision results, as long as the specimen is collected and disposed of properly.

It is also designed to be used in many locations outside of hospitals or laboratories. ” This device is very easy to operate , “ Professor Gao emphasized its practicality.

To quickly respond to the epidemic, medical device regulatory agencies in China are trying to speed up the approval of new corona virus diagnostic devices. Researchers around the world are also focusing on this goal. Ideally, they all wanted to create a fast and mobile test anywhere, like Professor Weijia’s machine.

While his device has been successfully used in mainland China, Professor Weijia is working on bringing the device to the Hong Kong market. Hong Kong Special Zone has now reported at least 24 patients infected with corona virus, including one death.

The City Health Protection Center said in a statement that it has enough test kits, using PCR heating, for more than 20,000 patient samples. Although there is no shortage, having a mobile device and shortening the time is also a good thing.

Refer to Scmp