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Keystone
Chinese researchers have developed a face mask with built-in sensors designed to detect viruses floating around in the air almost in real time.
Airborne viruses are particularly insidious, as the world has learned over the past nearly three years. A well-fitting mask offers reliable protection, but it is usually not possible to determine whether it has personally saved you from a specific infection.
However, Chinese researchers have now developed a face mask with a built-in corona test. Her invention, which she published in the journal “Matter” introducedcould quickly tell its wearers whether they are currently at risk of infection.
Result after ten minutes
The valve of the mask contains so-called aptamers, artificially produced DNA. Aptamers can bind to certain proteins, in this case those of SARS-COV-2 and the H1N1 and H5N1 flu viruses. If such a bond occurs, chips built into the mask recognize this.
The whole process takes a little time, and the warning should appear around ten minutes after contact with the virus. The sensors should be able to detect a virus volume that is many times lower than that which an infected person would emit when speaking, so that there is no risk of viruses remaining undetected.
In practice, the mask could make itself unnecessary. At an indoor event, you could first walk around with the mask for a quarter of an hour and then take it off if the sensors don’t hit. However, the invention is still in an early development phase.