Yudha Baskoro, Banten – The Indonesian Institute of Science (LIPI) is developing a detection kit for coronavirus it claims has the accuracy level of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test, the most common method to diagnose Covid-19.

The institute said on Monday the diagnostic tool, called "Qirani-19", can deliver result in less than one hour in a simpler, more sensitive and more efficient method than the PCR test.

It applies the reverse transcription loop?mediated isothermal amplification (RT?LAMP) – a molecular-based detection technique – to test a throat swab sample and the result is shown by a change in color of the mixture inside the tube.

LIPI is not the first to develop this method. In April, a group of Chinese scientists published an article on the use of RT-LAMP method to diagnose coronavirus with colorimetric and fluorescent readings.

Apart from the coronavirus diagnostic tool, LIPI's laboratory in Serpong, Banten, is also developing air purification machine to get rid of airborne bacteria and coronavirus in a room.

The air purifier is jointly developed by LIPI's Metallurgy and Materials Research Center, tech company Nanobubble Karya Indonesia and the Jakarta Regional Research Council.

The inventor, Professor Nurul Taufiqu Rochman, said the box-shaped machine is designed to prevent the spread of airborne bacteria and viruses and has the potential to neutralize the novel coronavirus during closed-door gatherings. The technology can be applied in offices, hospital wards and isolation rooms.

Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/vision/lipi-develops-covid19-diagnostic-tool-that-works-faster