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Dueling Ebola tests under development at BU, Harvard

By adamg on Tue, 11/04/2014 - 8:16am

The Daily Free Press reports BU researchers are working on a "single particle interferometric reflectance imaging sensor" that can confirm an Ebola diagnosis in about an hour, using a drop of a patient's blood.

The Crimson reports that Harvard researchers are working on test strips "containing freeze-dried enzymes called 'switches' " that can confirm an Ebola diagnosis in about 30 minutes, using a drop of a patient's blood.

Free tagging: 
Ebola
health care
Boston University
Harvard University


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Comments

By eight of 8 on Tue, 11/04/2014 - 2:31pm.

Yay Boston scientists!!!! Way to go; both methods sound very promising and adapted to resource-poor areas.

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By kitty on Thu, 11/06/2014 - 1:27am.

Do you think this is taking place in the BU Biolab?

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By SwirlyGrrl on Thu, 11/06/2014 - 8:10am.

Insofar as a virus can be said to be "live" ...

They may be targeting a distinct run of DNA or RNA or, in the case of the enzyme, expressed protein. This would make the experiments far safer than using actual infected blood or tissue (you really don't want to go to that level of biohazard facility if you can avoid it - the cost is astronomical).

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