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Rapid virus test developed using gold particles along with lasers

BY MARIN WOLF The Dallas Morning News TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

University of Texas at Dallas researchers have developed a rapid virus test using gold particles and lasers that promises to deliver results as accurate as lab tests in a fraction of the time.

The technology, called digital plasmonic nanobubble detection — or Diamond for short — is 150 times more accurate than standard rapid tests, according to a study published in Nature Communications. Its accuracy is comparable to polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, which take hours to perform.

The team of scientists that authored the study, led by associate professor of mechanical engineering Dr. Zhenpeng Qin, tested Diamond against respiratory syncytial virus, although the researchers say the technology can be used to detect other prominent viruses, like COVID-19 and influenza.

“For the (PCR) COVID test, we drive through the pharmacy and give the sample. Getting the sample tested usually takes two to four hours before we get the results,” said Haihang Ye, a research associate in mechanical engineering. “Our technology can reduce the sample testing time to 30 minutes, but the sensitivity can be as good as those molecular tests.”

A Diamond test, which Ye said can be produced for around $15, mixes a patient sample from a nasal swab with gold nanoparticles attached to antibodies for the virus being tested. The antibodies, marked by the gold nanoparticles, then bind with proteins on the virus’ surface if the virus is present in the sample.

Researchers then inject the sample mixed with labeled antibodies into a narrow tube mounted on a glass slide. As the liquid passes through the tube, it’s hit by the beams of two lasers, one of which activates the gold nanoparticles, causing them to expand. If the expansion is strong enough, the nanoparticle will boil the water around it and create vapor bubbles. Large nanobubbles mean the virus is present in the sample.

“If there’s no virus, there will be a tiny nanobubble signal from the particle only so we can differentiate the sample’s status,” said Yaning Liu, a mechanical engineering doctoral student and co-first author of the Diamond study.

Diamond is the product of years of research and millions of dollars in grant funding, including $2.5 million in grants from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a $293,000 grant from the Department of Defense’s Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs. While Diamond must be approved by the Food and Drug Administration before it can be used publicly, the scientists behind the technology launched a company called Avsana Labs to hopefully commercialize it. Qin serves as president of the company.

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2022-05-08T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-05-08T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://daily.gazette.com/article/282140704964294

The Gazette, Colorado Springs