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Brazilian scientists create cheap test project with app to diagnose COVID-19
Alessandro Feitosa Jr. - May 21, 2020 @ 3:01 pm - updated: May 21, 2020 @ 3:21 pm
Alessandro Feitosa Jr. - May 21, 2020 @ 3:01 pm - updated: May 21, 2020 @ 3:21 pm
[SHOWTOGROUPS=4,20]
A team of Brazilian researchers was awarded in a hackathon for creating the project for a rapid test for the new coronavirus that would be five times cheaper than the current ones, in addition to an application with computer vision that identifies the result and notifies the authorities. The idea, which seems unusual at first glance, uses zebrafish (São Paulo fish) to generate the tests with a diagnostic tape.
The project took third place in the Global Virtual Hackathon COVID19, an international competition that sought innovative solutions that could help fight the new coronavirus pandemic.
• Cheap pulmonary ventilator created at USP is approved in tests with humans• To test COVID-19 in a pharmacy, a patient must have had symptoms for at least 8 days
The team, led by researcher Ives Charlie, from USP's Institute of Biomedical Sciences (ICB), developed the project for a fast and inexpensive test that uses paulistinha fish, also known as zebrafish (or zebrafish) fish.
In an interview with Gizmodo Brasil , researchers Ives Charlie and Ilo Rivero, from PUC-MG, who participated in the development of the app, explained that the group is in the “validation and testing” phase.
“In a first analysis, the method developed by the team is avoiding the false negative. As we are still in the validation phase, we are raising possible supporters to ensure that we can do the tests on a large scale, but we will only be able to estimate the necessary resources after this validation ”, he explained.
How does the test work?
To identify the presence of the coronavirus in a person, rapid tests try to find traces of the virus.
The team took a protein from the new coronavirus called spike, injected it into female São Paulo fish that produced antibodies.
When they reproduce, the fish pass the antibodies to the eggs, which are then isolated. These isolated antibodies were used to make a diagnostic strip, which reacts with a patient's saliva - if negative, the strip shows a line; if it is positive, two.
The species, which measures up to 5 cm in length, can be easily created, facilitating the production of the test on a large scale. The method is the same used in other rapid tests, but which generally use antibodies obtained in other animals - such as chicken eggs, for example. The group's innovation is to use fish.
“Proteins have different molecular weights, we use a separation technique by weight and charge (electrophoresis) and are able to digest and transfer to nitrocellulose tape, a specific material to receive protein.
We are studying not to lose the quality of the product, because storage cannot be anywhere, it has to be in the refrigerator, among other issues.
You have to pass all tests. We developed and validated the first stage ”, explained Ives Charlie, from USP's Biomedical Sciences Institute (ICB), to Gizmodo Brasil .
Diagnostic tape model for coronavirus. Credit: Jornal da USP
Charlie explains that the team's idea was to produce tests that could be purchased in pharmacies and that the person could perform.
“The person would use a swab (flexible rod) to collect saliva and put it on the diagnostic tape to react with the COVID-19 antibodies. To obtain the result, she would open the application and read the QR code of the tape ”, explained the scientist to Jornal da USP .
In an interview with Gizmodo Brasil , Ilo Rivero, master in Computer Science at PUC-MG and professor of the IOT post at PUC-MG, said that the project has progressed in a positive way. “We proved in the laboratory that it is feasible and we are leaving to validate the test correctly. Some samples produced were sent to researchers to be checked by peers and asked about the effectiveness of the test. The result we had is very promising ”, he said.
Rivero participates in another stage of the project, which was also developed in the hackathon: the application that reads the test and informs health authorities. The diagnostic tape has a QR-Code that can be read to notify the authorities and uses a computer vision algorithm to identify whether the test gave one line (negative) or two lines (positive).
The app allows you to monitor people who tested positive for the new coronavirus from the location, as well as follow-up, through questions, of the main clinical signs of the disease, such as cough and fever, for 14 days.
“The idea is that it is five times cheaper than the test that is done today, which sometimes costs between R $ 200 and R $ 280 and has a lot of false positive and false negative problems. Based on the initial results, we were able to avoid these situations, which means that the patient does not need to do a second test ”, says Rivero.
The video below, in English, is the presentation of the project at the hackathon.
Hackathon and future of the project
As is common in hackathons, the development of the entire project is accelerated - Ives Charlie had 24 hours to assemble a multidisciplinary team and advance the project. Now, the test is in the validation phase and the team of researchers is working to quantify the concentration of antibodies needed to map how many fish would be needed for production on a global scale.
Despite the group's optimism, they are cautious, as coronavirus-related solutions often cause furor and anxiety. “We are going step by step, we don't want to release an unfinished product. Nobody is using this methodology of work and there are many factors involved: the assertiveness of the test has to be done calmly. It has the legal approval process of Anvisa. And there is also a lot of pressure from people who want to test, so we have to ensure a quality product. Now it's about focusing on work ”, summarized
Ilo Rivero.
The Global Virtual Hackathon COVID-19 was organized by the Ministry of Transport, Communications and High Technology of Azerbaijan in conjunction with the United Nations Development Program and brought together 600 projects from 45 countries.
The complete list of researchers involved was reproduced by the Jornal da USP . - USP stay to "University of São Paulo" ( our Harvard school
[/SHOWTOGROUPS]
A team of Brazilian researchers was awarded in a hackathon for creating the project for a rapid test for the new coronavirus that would be five times cheaper than the current ones, in addition to an application with computer vision that identifies the result and notifies the authorities. The idea, which seems unusual at first glance, uses zebrafish (São Paulo fish) to generate the tests with a diagnostic tape.
The project took third place in the Global Virtual Hackathon COVID19, an international competition that sought innovative solutions that could help fight the new coronavirus pandemic.
• Cheap pulmonary ventilator created at USP is approved in tests with humans• To test COVID-19 in a pharmacy, a patient must have had symptoms for at least 8 days
The team, led by researcher Ives Charlie, from USP's Institute of Biomedical Sciences (ICB), developed the project for a fast and inexpensive test that uses paulistinha fish, also known as zebrafish (or zebrafish) fish.
In an interview with Gizmodo Brasil , researchers Ives Charlie and Ilo Rivero, from PUC-MG, who participated in the development of the app, explained that the group is in the “validation and testing” phase.
“In a first analysis, the method developed by the team is avoiding the false negative. As we are still in the validation phase, we are raising possible supporters to ensure that we can do the tests on a large scale, but we will only be able to estimate the necessary resources after this validation ”, he explained.
How does the test work?
To identify the presence of the coronavirus in a person, rapid tests try to find traces of the virus.
The team took a protein from the new coronavirus called spike, injected it into female São Paulo fish that produced antibodies.
When they reproduce, the fish pass the antibodies to the eggs, which are then isolated. These isolated antibodies were used to make a diagnostic strip, which reacts with a patient's saliva - if negative, the strip shows a line; if it is positive, two.
The species, which measures up to 5 cm in length, can be easily created, facilitating the production of the test on a large scale. The method is the same used in other rapid tests, but which generally use antibodies obtained in other animals - such as chicken eggs, for example. The group's innovation is to use fish.
“Proteins have different molecular weights, we use a separation technique by weight and charge (electrophoresis) and are able to digest and transfer to nitrocellulose tape, a specific material to receive protein.
We are studying not to lose the quality of the product, because storage cannot be anywhere, it has to be in the refrigerator, among other issues.
You have to pass all tests. We developed and validated the first stage ”, explained Ives Charlie, from USP's Biomedical Sciences Institute (ICB), to Gizmodo Brasil .
Charlie explains that the team's idea was to produce tests that could be purchased in pharmacies and that the person could perform.
“The person would use a swab (flexible rod) to collect saliva and put it on the diagnostic tape to react with the COVID-19 antibodies. To obtain the result, she would open the application and read the QR code of the tape ”, explained the scientist to Jornal da USP .
In an interview with Gizmodo Brasil , Ilo Rivero, master in Computer Science at PUC-MG and professor of the IOT post at PUC-MG, said that the project has progressed in a positive way. “We proved in the laboratory that it is feasible and we are leaving to validate the test correctly. Some samples produced were sent to researchers to be checked by peers and asked about the effectiveness of the test. The result we had is very promising ”, he said.
Rivero participates in another stage of the project, which was also developed in the hackathon: the application that reads the test and informs health authorities. The diagnostic tape has a QR-Code that can be read to notify the authorities and uses a computer vision algorithm to identify whether the test gave one line (negative) or two lines (positive).
The app allows you to monitor people who tested positive for the new coronavirus from the location, as well as follow-up, through questions, of the main clinical signs of the disease, such as cough and fever, for 14 days.
“The idea is that it is five times cheaper than the test that is done today, which sometimes costs between R $ 200 and R $ 280 and has a lot of false positive and false negative problems. Based on the initial results, we were able to avoid these situations, which means that the patient does not need to do a second test ”, says Rivero.
The video below, in English, is the presentation of the project at the hackathon.
Hackathon and future of the project
As is common in hackathons, the development of the entire project is accelerated - Ives Charlie had 24 hours to assemble a multidisciplinary team and advance the project. Now, the test is in the validation phase and the team of researchers is working to quantify the concentration of antibodies needed to map how many fish would be needed for production on a global scale.
Despite the group's optimism, they are cautious, as coronavirus-related solutions often cause furor and anxiety. “We are going step by step, we don't want to release an unfinished product. Nobody is using this methodology of work and there are many factors involved: the assertiveness of the test has to be done calmly. It has the legal approval process of Anvisa. And there is also a lot of pressure from people who want to test, so we have to ensure a quality product. Now it's about focusing on work ”, summarized
Ilo Rivero.
The Global Virtual Hackathon COVID-19 was organized by the Ministry of Transport, Communications and High Technology of Azerbaijan in conjunction with the United Nations Development Program and brought together 600 projects from 45 countries.
The complete list of researchers involved was reproduced by the Jornal da USP . - USP stay to "University of São Paulo" ( our Harvard school
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