Researchers at the University of California San Diego are developing a color-changing test strip that can be stuck on a mask and used to detect COVID-19 in a user’s breath or saliva, according to www.constructiondive.com.
The project received $1.3 million from the National Institutes of Health and is aimed at providing simple, affordable, reliable surveillance for COVID-19 infections that can be used daily and easily implemented in settings such as construction sites.
The test strips, or stickers, will be designed to adhere to any type of mask and will detect the presence of protein-cleaving molecules—called proteases—produced from COVID-19 infection. As the user breathes through the mask, particles will accumulate in the test strip. At the end of the day or during a mask change, the user can conduct the test by squeezing a blister pack to release nanoparticles that change color in the presence of the COVID-19 proteases. A control line on the test strip will show what a positive result should look like.
“In many ways, masks are the perfect ‘wearable’ sensor for our current world,” said Jesse Jokerst, professor of nanoengineering at the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering and lead principal investigator of the project. “We’re taking what many people are already wearing and repurposing them, so we can quickly and easily identify new infections and protect vulnerable communities.”
However, Jokerst said the strips are not meant to replace other COVID-19 testing protocols and should be viewed as “a surveillance approach, similar to having a smoke detector in your house.”
The test strips easily can be mass produced via roll-to-roll processing and, if approved, reportedly could be ready for distribution by the end of 2021. The strips would cost about $1 each.
