Health department procures 10,000 of the testing cartridges to roll out to clinical sites
A new Covid-19 test developed by researchers at Imperial College London is claimed to deliver results in just over an hour without the need of a laboratory.
The RNA polymerase chain reaction test is based on a consumer DNA testing innovation called DnaNudge developed by Chris Toumazou, a professor of engineering and founder of the Institute of Biomedical Engineering at the university, Imperial announced on 10 April.
The tests have been clinically validated following a successful initial trial on Covid-19 patients. Toumazou and his team of clinical researchers have started large-scale clinical testing with a view to a national roll-out.
The Department of Health and Social Care has procured 10,000 DnaNudge Covid-19 RNA testing cartridges to roll out to clinical sites.
“Early validation results for our technology in the Covid-19 patient study have been excellent,” said Toumazou. “The DnaNudge test was developed as a lab-free, on-the-spot consumer service that can be delivered at scale, so we clearly believe it offers very significant potential in terms of mass population testing during the Covid-19 pandemic.”
The announcement comes amid widespread concern over the availability of testing across the NHS, with many healthcare workers self-isolating with suspected symptoms or family members who are ill. As of 8 April, 232,708 people have been tested for the virus, of which 60,733 tested positive, according to the health department. A total of 7,097 have died.
Health secretary Matt Hancock has recently revealed plans to scale up testing to 100,000 per day by the end of April with the help of universities, industry and the NHS.
“Whether it’s universities and labs donating testing capacity, or the development of new technology to help diagnose the virus more quickly, the whole industry has a part to play to build a large British diagnostics industry at pace,” said Lord Bethell, the health minister leading the government’s testing strategy, in a statement on 9 April.
“If we bring together the best minds and the best science this country has to offer then we can defeat this invisible killer.”
Bethell called on universities, businesses and industry to join the national effort on testing by signing up on a dedicated online portal launched on 8 April.