Taste-Based Influenza Test Could Replace Nasal Swabs with Chewing Gum

Influenza is one of the most dangerous infectious diseases worldwide, claiming around half a million lives each year. What makes it particularly insidious is that flu viruses are contagious even before the first symptoms appear. Yet, diagnostic options are often expensive, complicated to use, and unavailable in many poorer regions. Now, a new, very simple self-test in the form of chewing gum or a lollipop could detect infection within minutes by producing a recognizable taste when an active virus is present.

This rapid test, developed by researchers at the University of Würzburg (Würzburg, Germany), is based on a diagnostic principle that combines a sensor molecule (thymol, a natural flavor carrier) with a virus-specific recognition component so that active influenza viruses trigger release of the flavor in saliva. The method is flexible: flavor carrier and recognition component can be swapped (sweet, bitter, or salty flavors and alternative pathogen-specific building blocks), and the group envisions delivery formats such as chewing gum or lollipops that require no laboratory, electricity, or medical personnel.

In an experimental study, clinical samples were collected and documented by hospital teams while investigations on influenza virus particles were carried out in partner labs to validate the sensor concept. The proof-of-concept work, published in ACS Central Science, shows that contact between active influenza viruses and the neuraminidase-specific sensor releases the flavoring molecule, producing a clearly recognizable taste in infected mouths but not in uninfected controls. as.

The researchers are now working on incorporating the sensors into chewing gum or lollipops and adapting the system for mass production, a process they estimate will take about four years. They believe such low-threshold diagnostics would be particularly suitable for critical locations such as schools, nurseries, and retirement homes, and could be crucial in poorer countries for outbreak control. In the longer term, they envisage voluntary reporting via a smartphone app to map spread in real time and the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to predict where epidemics or pandemics might develop.

“Instead of relying on expensive and complicated testing procedures, we use the natural human sensory system – taste – as a tool for the early detection of infections,” said Professor Lorenz Meinel, who led the study. “This strategy opens up new possibilities for the early detection and control of influenza worldwide.”

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