The researchers discovered that the sensor was ready to detect the genetic materials at concentrations as little as 10 picograms per microlitre
U.Ok. and Indian scientists have collectively developed a low-cost sensor that may detect fragments of the virus answerable for COVID-19 inside wastewater, paving the way in which for well being officers to get a greater understanding of how prevalent the illness is in a bigger space.
The approach, developed by researchers from the University of Strathclyde and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, might be used to allow widespread monitoring of COVID-19 prevalence in low- and middle-income international locations which battle to conduct mass human testing.
The sensor can be utilized with transportable gear that makes use of the usual Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) check to detect the SARS-CoV-2 virus, with out the necessity for the costly chemical substances and lab infrastructure wanted for real-time quantitative PCR checks, in accordance to the analysis revealed just lately in the journal, Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical.
The sensor was examined with wastewater collected from a sewage remedy plant in Mumbai spiked with SARS-Cov-2 Ribonucleic Acid (RNA).
Andy Ward, Chancellor’s Fellow in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, mentioned: “Many low- to middle-income countries face a challenge in tracking COVID-19 in people because of limited access to the necessary facilities for mass testing. Looking for traces of the virus within wastewater would enable public health officials to get a better understanding of how prevalent the disease is in a larger area.”
Testing of wastewater for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid is already widely recognised as tool to identify areas where the case numbers are likely to be increasing and therefore allow more targeted action to be taken to limit viral spread in specific regions, Dr. Ward said.
“However, the current gold-standard method of real-time PCR testing (qPCR) requires expensive laboratory equipment and skilled scientists to complete. Furthermore, if resources are limited, testing of human samples would most likely take precedence over wastewater epidemiology surveillance. Therefore, lower cost, alternative approaches are required in order to support wastewater surveillance,” he mentioned.
The researchers discovered that the sensor was ready to detect the genetic materials at concentrations as little as 10 picograms per microlitre.
Siddharth Tallur, Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering at IIT Bombay, mentioned: “The method we have developed is not just applicable to SARS-CoV-2, it could be applied to any other virus so it’s very versatile. In the future, we’ll focus on optimising the assay further to increase accuracy and also integrate the assay with a portable platform to handle both PCR reaction and electrochemical measurement.”
