Diagnostic Kit Detects Zika Virus In Just 10-15 Minutes

This kit improves on current methods by detecting Zika virus directly in the blood.

AsianScientist (Jun. 10, 2016) – Precious metals manufacturing company Tanaka has developed a diagnostic kit to detect Zika virus directly in the blood.

The kit, which can detect Zika virus within just 10 to 15 minutes, may lead to simpler, faster and lower cost detection than existing methods. The company plans to supply samples to domestic and overseas medical manufacturers for clinical evaluation.

Existing methods used to detect Zika virus in blood uses polymerase chain reaction (PCR), which requires special equipment and takes between half a day and one day to complete. They detect antibodies to Zika virus that are produced in infected humans, making them unsuitable for diagnosis during the initial stages of infection.

With the new kit, however, the test strip needs only to be dipped into the test sample to enable viral detection. Additionally, by making it possible to detect Zika virus directly in the blood, special equipment like PCR will not be required.

Zika virus infection has been spreading since 2015, particularly in Brazil. As widely covered by the international media, studies have shown that if pregnant women become infected with Zika virus, the fetus may develop microcephaly, an abnormal smallness of the head associated with incomplete brain development.

There is also a possibility that infection may not only occur through mosquitoes, but also through blood transfusions and sexual contact.


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Source: Tanaka.
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