A team of scientists at Kyoto Prefectural University, Japan, developed a unique mask. This mask will light up when the user is exposed to the Corona virus.
The team, led by Yasuhiro Tsukamoto, hopes that the masks they developed will be an easy way for users to test whether they have contracted the virus or not.
Quoted from Japan Today, Saturday (11/21/2021) the traces of the Corona virus on the mask will light up when exposed to UV light. This mask uses antibodies extracted from ostrich eggs.
According to the researchers, the ostrich is capable of producing several different types of antibodies, or proteins that neutralize foreign objects in the body.
In February last year, the team injected an inactive, non-threatening form of the Corona virus into female ostrich. This method was successful in extracting large amounts of antibodies from the eggs they lay.
The team then developed a special filter that was placed inside the face mask. The filter can be removed and sprayed with a fluorescent dye containing Corona virus antibodies from ostrich eggs. If there is a virus, the filter will glow when exposed to ultraviolet light.
When conducting a 10-day experiment with 32 people infected with the Corona virus, they found that all the masks they wore glowed under UV light. The light will fade as the viral load decreases.
Subsequently, Tsukamoto and his team expanded the experiment even further, to include 150 participants. The Chancellor of Kyoto Prefectural University found that he was positive for COVID-19 after being detected using the experimental mask, and glowed when he was examined. He confirmed his status by performing a PCR test, and the result was indeed positive.
"We can mass produce antibodies from ostrich at low cost. In the future, I want to make this an easy test kit that anyone can use," said Tsukamoto.
Currently, testing continues to make masks more practical to use. The research team is trying to get government approval to be able to sell these masks, possibly next year.