TECHNOLOGY:
FastPCR for portable, rapid disease detection
AFFILIATION:
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California, United States
TECHNOLOGY SUMMARY
Area:
Diagnostic technologies for identification of SARS-CoV-2 from human nasal, buccal, or saliva samples
Tech Brief: Portable, rapid PCR system that will provide accurate COVID-19 diagnosis within 5 to 15 minutes of patient contact. Automated sample preparation will use single use, disposable cartridges. The portable system incorporates a cell phone to control, collect, and distribute data via Wi-Fi or cellular network immediately to a healthcare database.
SHOWCASE SUMMARY
Org Type:
Academic/Gov Lab
FIGURES OF MERIT
Value Proposition: Our FastPCR technology can be used to rapidly detect any infectious disease in the field, clinics, hospitals, and is practical for portal screening. This innovation can be used to detect viral, bacterial, etc. nucleic acids 10 times faster than standard PCR, which is the gold standard in molecular diagnostics. This increased testing throughput in a portable, push-button format enables it to be the crucial diagnostic to fight pandemics like we are currently experiencing. On-board sample preparation, amplification, and analysis can happen within 5 minutes of patient contact. This technology can be adapted to monitor sepsis, detect STDs, and address a host of other pressing medical concerns. Because of FastPCR’s flexibility in utilizing assay-specific consumable cartridges, there are many markets for a commercial partner.