Jun 29, 2021 11:12:00

A mask will be developed that will immediately tell if the wearer is infected with the new corona

A collaborative research team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University has announced that it has developed a mask that determines 'whether the wearer is infected with the new coronavirus' within 90 minutes of wearing it.

Wearable materials with embedded synthetic biology sensors for biomolecule detection | Nature Biotechnology

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41587-021-00950-3

New face mask prototype can detect Covid-19 infection | MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology
https://news.mit.edu/2021/face-mask-covid-19-detection-0628

Below is a photo of the mask that was actually developed. A detector is attached to the outside of the mask, and a paper showing the detection result is attached to the inside. To protect the privacy of the user, the results are hidden from the outside. The detector is fitted with a small capsule of water.

This detector, named 'SHERLOCK,' diagnoses

Ebola virus and Zika virus by embedding proteins and nucleic acids necessary for creating a synthetic gene network that reacts with specific target molecules such as RNA and DNA in paper. What I made possible. SHERLOCK is lyophilized and activated by reacting with water to react with target molecules such as RNA and DNA.

After seeing the epidemic of the new coronavirus worldwide in early 2020, the research team immediately created a SHERLOCK targeting the RNA of the new coronavirus, covered it with resin parts, and attached it to the mask. I did. When you press the button during the test, SHERLOCK is activated by the water contained in the capsule, and the virus contained in the exhaled breath is detected within 90 minutes.

'This test is as sensitive as the sensitive PCR test, but for rapid analysis of new coronavirus infections,' said Peter Nguyen, a member of the research team and a researcher at Harvard University's

Wis Institute. It is characterized by results that are as fast as the antigen tests used. '

In addition to the new coronavirus and Ebola virus, SHERLOCK can also detect influenza virus and organophosphorus nerve agents. The researchers argue that the detector could be incorporated not only into masks, but also into clothing such as lab coats, providing a new way to monitor healthcare professionals under threat from a variety of pathogens. ..