A new approach to rapid, sensitive and highly specific screening for Covid-19 RNA

Rapid, accurate and sensitive testing for Covid-19 infection will remain a pressing need for the foreseeable future. This is key to both saving lives and regaining a semblance of normality in our society. We propose a new approach that utilises a novel CRISPR technology, pioneered by our lab in St Andrews, that detects viral RNA directly, with two inbuilt amplification steps to provide a clear fluorescent light signal quickly. The assay uses components already developed by us, avoids the use of scarce reagents and expensive equipment, and can be developed for low resource and point-of-care settings. The team is in place to start work immediately.