Salivary swabs, where are we?
Salivary swabs: who accelerates, who brakes and who hopes.
The race to the salivary swab continues, the rapid test that reveals in a few minutes if you have been infected by Covid-19.
The test could make a difference in schools, where a quick (and non-invasive) screening of children could be carried out in the event of a suspicion or positive outcome.
Salivary tests, however, have not yet convinced the Spallanzani Institute , which still considers them unreliable or necessary for laboratory equipment.
On the other hand, the University of Insubria has a different thought, which in collaboration with the Asst dei Sette Laghi has developed and experimented with the rapid salivary test (Trs) capable of detecting, within a few minutes, the presence of the Coronavirus. Diasorin is also working on this front (and the test would have already been validated).
Let's go step by step.
THE POSITION OF THE SPALLANZANI
Let's start from the official positions of Spallanzani . The Institute, which has analyzed two different salivary tests, believes that antigenic and molecular tests on saliva samples "at the moment are unlikely to lend themselves to the rapid screening of many people as they require an equipped laboratory".
The Institute also specified that the study continues: “at Spallanzani antigenic tests suitable for screening on saliva are being evaluated. These are accurate laboratory tests, simpler and faster than molecular tests, which are performed in the laboratory, and not so-called "rapid" tests, also known as "soap" tests, which are more suitable for other applications " .
THE TEST OF THE UNIVERSITY OF INSUBRIA
Among the salivary tests that could change Spallanzani's mind is the one developed by the University of Insubria, in collaboration with the Asst dei Sette Laghi. It is a salivary swab whose functioning is similar to that of the pregnancy test. A few drops of saliva diluted with a suitable solution are applied to a small strip of absorbent paper and the result is obtained from three to six minutes: if a band forms the subject is negative, if two bands form it is positive ", explains the same University .
WHO WORKED ON THE TEST
The idea of the salivary test is by Lorenzo Azzi, researcher of Dentistry, and Mauro Fasano, professor of Biochemistry. The reagents and kits were created by the Insubria laboratories in Busto Arsizio, coordinated by the researcher Tiziana Alberio. The experiment was conducted in the Microbiology laboratory directed by Fausto Sessa at the Circolo Hospital in Varese.
THE EXPERIMENTATION
Here, we come to the experimentation, which according to what the University told Start Magazine "gave the desired results".
The rapid salivary swab was tested on 137 subjects, both affected by Covid-19 and healthy. Each saliva sample was evaluated with two tests: the molecular one, conducted by researcher Andreina Baj, and the experimental one.
WORKING FOR PRODUCTION
Now we are working to start production and validation. Already in May, the University of Insubria signed an agreement with the NatrixLab of Reggio Emilia, for the construction of various prototypes.
THE WORK OF DIASORIN
Even Diasorin, the company that has ended up in the eye of the storm for the exclusive agreement on serological tests for the Lombardy Region , tested by the San Matteo Polyclinic, is aiming for salivary tests. In fact, the company managed to affix the CE marking to the SimplexaTM Covid-19 Direct test for its use with saliva samples.
VALIDATED TEST
According to Rainews , the Diasorin test would have already obtained validation "on a wide range of sample types that can be taken both in the upper and lower respiratory tract, and in the lungs and can be performed simultaneously with SimplexaTM Flu A / B and RSV Direct Gen II, allowing the differential diagnosis of Sars-CoV-2 infection from that caused by influenza type A or B and respiratory syncytial virus during the next flu season ”.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/innovazione/tamponi-salivari-a-che-punto-siamo/ on Tue, 29 Sep 2020 05:40:40 +0000.