Hand-Held Biosensor Device Could Enable Immediate, Sensitive Point-of-Care Detection of SARS-CoV-2 from Saliva

A handheld biosensor that instantaneously detects viruses and disease in saliva could revolutionize point-of-care (POC) COVID-19 testing.

Blink Science, Inc. (Jacksonville, FL, USA) will soon bring to market, blinkTEST, a handheld biosensor device that can immediately detect COVID-19, and other disease biomarkers in saliva. Most POC testing devices currently available, or that have received Emergency Use Authorization (EUA), provide tests in well over 20-30 minutes. Blink is developing a low-cost, high-tech device that will provide an immediate testing response. The system will provide health reports that can be analyzed immediately to ensure rapid and precise diagnosis for acute and chronic conditions that impact people worldwide. blinkTEST will give instantaneous results without requiring costly genetic testing.

The blinkTEST biosensor reads the electrical charges between antibodies and an easy-to use test strip. And while the initial usages will be to combat COVID-19, the technology has also been tested in the lab with extremely low concentrations of proteins secreted during myocardial infarcts (heart attacks) and to detect cerebrospinal fluid, indicating that this novel testing approach could be applied to a broad set of existing diagnostic. The unique test strips will be capable of molecular detection of antigen-antibody binding and can deliver qualitative and, in some cases, highly sensitive quantitative data.

The modular technology platform will be capable of testing for multiple infectious agents (viral, bacterial, and parasitic), disease-related proteins (cardiac disease and potentially cancer), and chemicals (substance abuse or environmental contaminants) within or external to the body using saliva, urine, blood, or other biological samples. This fundamental breakthrough in bioelectronic molecular testing is instant, reliable, inexpensive (pennies per strip), ultra-sensitive (ng/ml), highly specific, and portable. The product is not yet currently available for use in the US and is in the preparation phase of being submitted to the FDA for an EUA.

“What we are bringing to market is revolutionary. This device will be able to provide the fastest test not only for COVID-19, but also for a number of other viruses and specific disease states” said Blink Science CEO and president, Eric Doherty.

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Blink Science, Inc.