Early detection of people infected with the novel Coronavirus has become an imminent challenge around the world as the epidemic continues to develop. A team of researchers from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) recently invented the world’s fastest portable COVID-2019 detection device. With the latest microfluidic chip technology, the device can detect the virus in just 40 minutes from sampling to testing, compared to the currently-used polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology which takes between 1.5 to 3 hours.
PCR technology is a molecular biotechnology used to amplify specific DNA fragments for the extraction of viral RNA and the speed of temperature change is the key that determines the efficiency of the DNA’s amplification process, meaning the faster the temperature rises, the shorter the device can come up with a test result. Read More...
The new microfluidic biochip detection device, invented by Prof. WEN and his team, can detect the novel Coronavirus in just 40 minutes from sampling to testing.
Prof. WEN (Middle) and Dr. GAO (right) introduce the theories behind their novel detection device in their research base at Shenzhen.
A research team led by scientists from HKUST unveiled a first-in-kind study of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and its role in the rise and fall of airborne sulfates...
An international research team led by HKUST has demonstrated that cooling by internal waves could potentially create thermal refuges for coral reefs...