Cheap antibody test which could give result in 10 minutes sent for validation in fight against COVID-19

March 27: When the total confirmed cases of coronavirus is approaching 6 lakh involving almost all the countries of the world, experiments are on in the laboratories of many countries to device vaccine for the deadly virus. Experiments are also on for devising antibody test apparatus. A ray of hope in this connection was kindled by an UK company, Mologic, who has created a 10-minute coronavirus antibody test costing $1 (around ₹75) and has begun sending prototypes for validation.

If successful,at a cost of as little as one US dollar (around ₹75) per test, taking ten minutes to give results, it could be a game changer in dealing with the global pandemic. Health technology firm Mologic, which created one of the first at-home pregnancy tests, is aiming for the test to be rolled out by as early as June if the trials are successful. Mologic said assessment and validation of its COVID-19 diagnostic test had begun this week at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and St Georges hospital, and that global partners would also examine the prototypes.

Antibody tests are designed to establish whether people have previously been infected, as opposed to antigen tests which show if someone actually has the COVID-19 disease caused by the virus. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s spokesman said: “If we are able to find an antibody test which works that could be a game-changer.” But officials are cautious about the trade-off between producing something as quickly as possible and making sure that the tests work.

Mologic, which is based near Bedford, north of London, said that after assessment in Britain, the prototypes would be shipped to validation partners in China, the United States, Malaysia, Spain, Brazil and Senegal.