A team of scientists is currently working on developing a new type of virus detection test, which uses a smart phone camera, and an application designed in the way of spiral neural networks or "convolutions", to carry out genetic testing and DNA, for saliva samples or swabs from the throat, to detect a virus « Corona »with the body, and showing the result within 30 minutes, at a minimal cost, instead of the current PCR analyzes, which take longer to show the result.

The specialized scientific journal, "Nature", revealed the details of the new research project in a lengthy report, which was recently published on its official website, explaining the design and components of the system carried out by a team of researchers at the American University of Cincinnati, headed by the assistant professor in the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering. At university, Dr. Ashish Prie.

The magazine indicated that the prototype of the new system may appear early next year.

Acid amplification

Introducing the new test, Dr. Prey said, according to the Nature report, that he had not started work on the system from scratch, but rather based on the principles of genetic analyzes of DNA viruses, which first appeared in 1985 by the famous scientist Curry Molise, the inventor of genetic analysis technology known as "BCR", for which he won the "Nobel Prize".

Bray showed that the analyzes are based on a controlled chemical reaction, in which a sample of DNA, or RNA in the case of the virus, is placed in a tube of polymers, along with some short strands of DNA, known as prefixes, and an enzyme known in The state of polymerization, then the mixture is heated repeatedly, so the size of the DNA or RNA multiplies several times, and a type of "amplification" occurs, and then specific genetic sequences of acid are selected that ultimately lead to a very accurate identification of the virus.

Cheap test

Prey added that despite the accuracy of the results of the «PCR», they need special equipment and devices, which are not widely available, and are somewhat expensive, and it takes up to several hours until the result appears, in addition to lost Time to deliver samples to laboratory and laboratory headquarters.

For those reasons, Berri added, he and his team are working on a new test, which has the same accuracy in the examination, and is accessible to all, at a minimal cost, in addition to showing results in a few minutes instead of hours.

System components

Berry provided many deep technical details about his new system, explaining that it is a system consisting of an ultra-thin metal plate and plastic tubes, and then uses the mobile smartphone components, from a camera and a dual LED light to generate light, and then application It works with neural networks, which are used in "computer vision" systems based on artificial intelligence and machine learning tools, which allow the system to be trained in knowing and identifying the DNA or RNA of the virus, by highlighting the light from a mobile phone, on the sample placed in the tube placed on the metal slide Special, and then converting light into heat, to heat the DNA, to enlarge its size, as is the case in the PCR system, then take the inflated images with the camera on the phone, and send the inflated images to the application, for the neural networks to recognize them, via a long chain And complicated processes of matching and identification of patterns and so on, and then give the result.

special design

Berri said that until now the team has validated this theoretical assumption, and has moved to the stage of designing the system for preparing the system for building it and bringing it to the stage of the operable prototype.

A major shift

Nature magazine reported that trying to develop the new type of virus detection tests, if successful, would lead to a major shift in the field of viral genetic analyzes in general, and not only detection of the Corona virus, as it would put humanity on the threshold of a new generation of systems Cheap genetic analyzes, widely available, at a minimal cost, while maintaining the accuracy and reliability of PCR systems.

The magazine pointed out, that this was not the first attempt for this type of testing, but many scientists around the world have previously worked on it, and a great development took place in this field, among which was the emergence of the examination system known as "LAMP", which provided a great simplification in the way Design and build genetic analysis systems based on PCR principles.