A minituarized disposable molecular diagnostics platform for combatting coronavirus infections

The DECISION consortium is developing a new class of diagnostic platform that will transform the fight against pandemics. The low-cost, miniaturised, disposable molecular diagnostic platform will allow for patient testing virtually anywhere, within a few minutes, with laboratory quality performance. The diagnostic platform will enable rapid detection of Covid-19 infections on-site in a multitude of settings including drive-through testing centres, physician offices, airports, hospitals and quarantine centres. First demonstrators of the disposable molecular diagnostic platform and coronavirus test will be available five months after the start of the project and could be provided to emergency first responders and public health authorities. The platform is powered by a next-generation nucleic acid amplification technology called Pulse Controlled Amplification (PCA®), which enables sample-to-answer workflows in 15 minutes or less. The DECISION consortium is comprised of teams from Italy, Spain and Germany, and is highly motivated to develop a ground-breaking diagnostic solution to help the serious crisis faced across the world due to the Covid-19 epidemic.