South African company gets R900 million to develop rapid Covid-19 test – using tobacco plants [Business Insider, 27 December 2020]

Title:

SA company gets R900 million to develop rapid Covid-19 test - using tobacco plants

 

Author:

Luke Daniel

 

Published:

Business Insider South Africa, 27 December 2020

https://www.businessinsider.co.za/business/sa-company-gets-r900-million-in-funding-to-develop-rapid-covid-19-test-using-tobacco-plant-2020-12

 

From the article:

* Nicotiana benthamiana - a plant of the tobacco variety - is being used to produce Covid-19 antibodies.

* These bio-engineered antibodies will be extracted from a laboratory in Mauritius and developed into rapid test kits and potential vaccines.

* The company leading the programme is a product of the University of Cape Town's Biopharming Research Unit.

A new biosensor detects COVID-19 antibodies in 10-12 seconds [Advanced Science News, 24 December 2020]

Title:

A new biosensor detects COVID-19 antibodies in 10-12 seconds

 

Published:

Advanced Science News, 24 December 2020

https://www.advancedsciencenews.com/a-new-biosensor-detects-covid-19-antibodies-in-10-12-seconds/

 

From the article:

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University report findings on an advanced nanomaterial-based biosensing platform that detects, within seconds, antibodies specific to SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to testing, the platform will help to quantify patient immunological response to the new vaccines with precision.

 

The results were published this week in the journal Advanced Materials. Carnegie Mellon’s collaborators included the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) and the UPMC.

Coronavirus research updates: Severely ill people yield diverse trove of powerful antibodies. Nature wades through the literature on the new coronavirus - and summarizes key papers as they appear

Title:
Coronavirus research updates: Severely ill people yield diverse trove of powerful antibodies. Nature wades through the literature on the new coronavirus - and summarizes key papers as they appear.

Published:
Nature, 22 July 2020
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-00502-w

From the article:
Scientists have identified a diverse group of antibodies that block the new coronavirus’s ability to infect cells — even when applied in low doses.