Smartphone-based testing device cuts time and cost of diagnostics

This is the claim of research led by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign electrical and computer engineering professor Brian Cunningham and bioengineering professor Rashid Bashir, whose approximately $50 solution is described in Lab on a Chip.

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Most viral test kits rely on labour- and time-intensive laboratory preparation and analysis techniques. Tests for Covid-19 can take days to detect the virus from nasal swabs.

"The challenges associated with rapid pathogen testing contribute to a lot of uncertainty regarding which individuals are quarantined and a whole host of other health and economic issues," Cunningham said in a statement.

The study set out to detect a panel of viral and bacterial pathogens in horses, including those that cause severe respiratory illnesses like those presented in COVID-19.

"Horse pathogens can lead to devastating diseases in animal populations, of course, but one reason we work with them has to do with safety. The horse pathogens in our study are harmless to humans," Cunningham said.