RNA Validation and Extraction Kit

Background

SARS-CoV 2, a novel coronavirus implicated in the coronavirus pandemic described by the World Health Organization is a one of RNA viruses that cause a group of infections described as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The outbreak which started in Wuhan, China as the epicenter has since seen the virus migrate past the epicenter into other geographical territories. The crippling effect of the pandemic in countries with very poor healthcare systems is very worrying as it has the potential of causing havoc and mass death. However, early detection for onward containment is the goal of most public health interventions triggered by epidemic outbreaks and worst case scenario, pandemics. But in the face of the current covid-19 pandemic, testing and diagnosis is restricted to few laboratories and research institutions noted to be equipped with the right containment laboratories largely made up of Biological Safety Level 3 safety cabinets. Decentralization of the testing and diagnostic process in hospitals is one of the surest strategies for early identification of the covid-19 virus within the population (asymptomatic) , onward containment of positive cases and prevention of further outbreaks. Therefore to achieve a decentralized testing and diagnosis of the covid-19 virus we are building an open and DIY BSL3 flow hood with smart abilities to be in hospital laboratories in low-resource settings to aid diagnosticians in testing and providing timely reports for the disease containment and management.

Problem statement

Most laboratories in Low and Middle Income Countries (LMICs) considered as low-resource settings do not have laboratories equipped with the right equipment like the BSL 3 biological safety cabinet for SARS-CoV 2 testing. The results are mass transmissions, death and inflation of goods and services needed for preventive care.

Solution

The Hive Biolab, an open community DIY Bio lab in Ghana is currently working with a team of biologists and engineers at Kumasi Hive, a makerspace in Ghana to improve a DIY flow hood we designed into a BSL 3 flow hood equipped with a high efficiency particulate air 2 (HEPA) filter and IoT to be deployed and used in community hospital laboratories for rapid testing of protocols for early Covid-19 virus detection. Designs for the DIY BSL 3 flow hood will be openly shared for easy remaking by anyone within the global testing community to aid not only in early testing for hospital care but also for research use.