KU professor creating at-home rapid COVID-19 test

A University of Kansas professor and his graduate students are leading the way on an at-home COVID-19 test.

IMAGINE THIS.YOU THINK YOU COULDHAVE COVID-19 OR MAYHAVE BEEN EXPOSED TOIT.SO YOU TAKE A TEST - ATHOME TO FIND OUT - ANDGET YOUR RESULTS INJUST A FEW MINUTES.A GROUP OF LOCALRESEARCHERS AREWORKING TO MAKE ITHAPPEN.41 ACTION NEWSREPORTER JORDAN BETTSEXPLAINS HOW IT WOULDWORK.Dr. Steven Soper, FoundationDistinguished Professor at KU"If anyone was going to tackletechnically a problemdeveloping new diagnostictests for covid, I had the rightteam to do that."IT'S AN AT HOME COVID-19TEST.Dr. Steven Soper, FoundationDistinguished Professor at KU"These little chips go into amachine and the chip wouldactually take a salvia sampleand it will pull out of thatsalviasample the virus particles forcovid-19."WITH TEST RESULTSWITHIN FIFTEEN MINUTES.Dr. Steven Soper, FoundationDistinguished Professor at KU"The patient gets an idea ofoh they have viral particles intheir salvia.

They better getfurther testing."DOCTOR STEVEN SOPERAND HIS GRADUATESTUDENTS AT K-U AREWORKING AROUND THECLOCK TO GET THISUNIQUE TESTING KITREADY FOR F-D-AAPPROVAL.THAT APPROVAL USUALLYTAKES YEARS....NOTANYMORE.Dr. Steven Soper, FoundationDistinguished Professor at KU"But because of this COVID-19, they want to get newdiagnostic tests out onto themarket very, very rapidly.

Theyare reducing that down toseveral months."HIS STUDENTS USING THISMACHINE TO TEST THECHIPS.THE THOUGHT IS WHILETHEY ARE DEVELOPINGTHE HAND-HELD GADGET,LABS COULD USE THESEMACHINES TO SPEED UPTESTING.Swarnagowri Vaidyanathan, KUbioengineering doctoral student"Eight devices in 15 minutes.That is like 32 devices in anhour and we have like 30machines, we could do 30,000devices a day.

Which means30,000 tests a day."THE K-U TEAM IS HOPINGANYONE COULD BUY ATHOME KIT IN DRUG STORESBY NEXT YEAR.COSTING AROUND 100DOLLARS AND TESTINGCHIPS SELLING FOR A FEWBUCKS.Dr. Steven Soper, FoundationDistinguished Professor at KU"Thats part of an academicsjob: either educating studentsor getting them involved inprojects that really make adifference.

That's what it's allabout."IN LAWRENCE JORDANBETTS 41 ACTION