A new COVID-19 test could be able to identify carriers before they show any symptom or become infectious and spread the disease.
The test has emerged from DARPA, the U.S. military’s research division. US military scientists are developing a new kind of blood test. This test will be able to detect the presence of coronavirus as early as 24 hours after infection. It will detect it about four days before current tests can detect the virus.
Scientists are applying for an emergency use authorization of the test from the Food and Administration (FDA). If all goes well and this test works as expected, it could play as a game changer. It will help in preventing future outbreaks.
At present, there are three types of coronavirus tests available: nasal swab diagnostics, antibody tests and antigen tests.
However this new test does not hunt for the virus, but it looks at the body’s response to the virus.
Lead researcher Stuart Sealfon, said, “Because the immune response to infection develops immediately after infection, a COVID signature is expected to provide more sensitive COVID infection diagnosis earlier.”
