Marseille supporters at the Vélodrome stadium in 2018. - Franck PENNANT / AFP

  • A Montpellier Consortium has invented a much less invasive express saliva test that gives the Covid a positive or negative result in one hour
  • Leagues and sports clubs, which must test themselves many times, have shown themselves to be particularly interested in this new screening method, like Montpellier Handball.
  • In the longer term, the saliva test can offer new perspectives to the organizers of major sporting events

It is with a certain relief, let us say it, that the players of Montpellier Handball learned that they were going to escape the famous Chinese torture of the cotton swab stuck very deep in the nose, for the resumption of training at the Palais des sports René Bougnol. Monday, the first day of school after three months (too) far from the floors, Patrice Canayer's players were indeed the first "guinea pigs" of the new saliva test created in record time by a 100% tricolor consortium, formed by biotechnology company Skillcell, the CNRS research laboratory Sys2Diag, and the company Vogo.

Less painful removal and faster results

Called EasyCov, this new test, which is unique in the world for the moment, since England or the United States preferred to work on a home test without any real change in waiting times, promises a revolution in practice. The patient only needs to take a drop of saliva under his tongue using a pipette, and give the sample to the caregiver who will place it in a small case heated to 65 degrees in the laboratory. “An hour later, we have the colorimetric result via an application downloaded by the club doctor, rejoices Christophe Carniel, director of the Montpellier-based company Vogo, responsible for the digital interface of the project. The database can be populated as and when the players to be tested. Obviously, for sports clubs which need to carry out frequent screenings, it is much less invasive than the usual procedure ”.

[# Covid-19]
The @mhbofficiel undergoes the #EasyCov saliva test for a world first.

Patrice #Canayer: "All the tests turn out to be negative, very good news for the rest of our summer preparation"

Find out more➡️https: //t.co/MhFm2pMDGO pic.twitter.com/NBK9mUsIzN

- Montpellier Handball (@mhbofficiel) July 2, 2020

And much faster, since laboratories today deliver the results of PCR tests in 24 hours, in the best of cases. "This world premiere went very well," says one side of Montpellier. It was folded in less than two hours and we were lucky to have no positive players. ” Scientifically validated by the Montpellier CHU, which found results equivalent to those provided by the usual PCR test, namely a sensitivity of 70% and very few false positives, from a survey of 180 patients, Easy Cov could change the life of sports clubs and federations preparing for the return to competition.

Roxana Maracineanu visited the laboratory

"At the beginning, we thought more of nursing homes or carers, but very quickly, we realized that the sports world could be very interested, recognizes Franck Molina, biologist at CNRS and coordinator of the project. We wanted to offer a complementary test to that of the laboratories which responds to a request for agility in the field ”. Roxana Maracineanu, passing through the area to meet Kevin Mayer recently, made a detour by the CNRS research laboratory to get an idea of ​​the potential of Easycov. At the Ministry of Sports, we confirm that we are very interested in this new test: “For us, it is sure that it is something that can represent a great interest. There is a very strong demand from federations and athletes to find solutions which make it possible to screen in a simpler way, with less waiting ”.

Julian Alaphilippe, Thibaut Pinot and all the favorites of the Tour de France will explain themselves during the 19th stage between Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne and Tignes. - Christophe Ena / AP / SIPA

According to our information, many discussions have already started with sports players, in addition to clubs in the Montpellier region. The National Rugby League (LNR) and the Professional Football League (LFP) have shown interest in this saliva test, even if they consider it premature to communicate on the subject. The UCI also obtained information in connection with the resumption of the cycling season and especially the Tour de France, at the end of August.

The affordable price of EasyCov, around 40 euros, its relatively easy deployment by means of a portable heating device, and its significant production capacity (200,000 kits of 25 tests each per week) even open up exciting prospects for the world of events in times of pandemic. Why not imagine, for example, inviting spectators to the League Cup or Roland-Garros final to perform an express saliva test before going back to the stadium?

The Tour de France and the top 14 interested?

"Before talking about the public, there are already the first matches behind closed doors that will take place this summer, tempers Christophe Carniel. That potentially means 200 or 300 people who could be tested live. Then, if we start to think bigger, it may make people who go to games or rallies safer. Personally, I believe, it takes a little time for it to fall into place ”. The Ministry of Health, for example, has yet to decide on the possible reimbursement of the saliva test, a decision which would make it possible to generalize even more saliva screening, for the moment only proposed by the laboratories of the Inovie group, present mainly in the South of France.

Coronavirus: the saliva test, possible surveillance tool for the Academy of Medicine https://t.co/oaaIkVXe9D pic.twitter.com/UlM0sv9Joo

- BFMTV (@BFMTV) July 1, 2020

"Discussions are underway with the various health authorities, we try not to do anything," says Franck Molina. Today there are regulatory brakes that prevent us from planning ahead. But in the near future, I do not despair that this test will be generalized for fun activities ”. With, who knows, a subsidy from the ministries concerned to help their federations finance the purchase of large-scale saliva tests.

Without drawing plans on the comet, warns Antoine Flahault, epidemiologist at the University of Geneva. “The idea of ​​having saliva tests is indeed the future. We really need faster tests but also better acceptance than the nasopharyngeal swab, which can be quite unpleasant, especially for populations who have to repeat it often. But will it free people around major events, I'm not sure. Like the PCR, the saliva test does not make it possible to detect the incubation period, this period of time of 14 days when one can be contagious without being tested positive. We reduce the risk, but it still exists.

Sport

Tour de France: Prep, form, weather… What does the postponement in September change?

Sport

Roland-Garros: The tournament will welcome "50 to 60% of its usual spectator gauge", announces Giudicelli

  • Covid 19
  • Roland Garros
  • Soccer
  • Rugby
  • Coronavirus
  • Sport