Part of the concern surrounding the coronavirus outbreak is the lack of tests. According to CNN, scientists are now working to develop faster and more cost-effective COVID-19 tests.
A team at Oxford's Engineering Science Laboratory are working to create a coronavirus test that would give patients their result in 30 minutes. Also, the raw materials for this test would only cost manufacturers around $25 to create. These scientists are working with medics in China who have been researching the test for eight weeks prior to their partnership. Although there are still a few things that need to be ironed out, the team is confident that the test will be ready for clinical trials in the near future.
"We have 3 things to do," the team's leader, Professor Zhengfang Cui, told CNN. "The first is to get clinical trials. We just started those here at Oxford University Hospital. The second thing is regulatory approval, which is based on the number of tests done. The third is to get industry partners to implement large scale manufacture. For that, we need clean rooms and manufacturing facilities. And then we can roll out the product."
Zhenfang is optimistic about this process. He believes that all the testing can be completed and the product will be ready in 2-4 weeks.
Last week, NPR reported that the United States is experiencing testing delays due to a lack of swabs needed to conduct the current form of testing. These "highly specialized swabs" are only made by two manufacturers that have been overrun be orders.
