The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) announced on Tuesday that its interdisciplinary research team has developed a portable Novel Coronavirus test capable of delivering accurate Novel Coronavirus detection to human and public surface samples in the community.

Polyu’s interdisciplinary research team was awarded a grant from the Healthcare Research Fund in 2020 to carry out the research work. In the past one and a half years, the team has successfully conducted novel coronavirus tests using rT-PCR using gold nanoparticles as nucleic acid amplifiers. The clinical sample test results are in full compliance with rT-PCR criteria.

Yeh Shee-ping, professor and head of the Department of Medical Technology and Informatics, who led the study, said the detector can hold up to six samples at the same time and can detect up to four samples at the same time, excluding the two positive and negative controls. Positive samples can be confirmed within 25 minutes, and the whole test can be completed in approximately 40 minutes. The sensitivity and specificity can reach 100%, which is in line with the current “gold standard” of novel Coronavirus nucleic acid testing.

According to the report, the detector can be used to detect human and environmental samples, as well as different viruses and bacteria. The team hopes to commercialize the research results for mass production, at which time the cost of each test will be half cheaper than the existing nucleic acid test, which is very suitable for use in airports, quarantine facilities, ports, restaurants, shopping malls, schools and other places with large traffic.