Project
SaLux
SaLux is a project initiated in the early phases of the Covid-19 pandemic at the Max-Planck- Institute of Experimental Medicine (now Max-Planck-Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences). The aim was to develop a reliable, affordable, hand-held device to detect the SARS-CoV-2 virus with comparable sensitivity and selectivity to the PCR Method using a simplified PCR technique called LAMP. This method does not require successive heating and cooling phases for each amplification and works at a constant temperature of 64 degrees C. The SaLux device requires only electrical power available from any standard smartphone power adapter and uses lyophilized reagents that do not require cooling.
Therefore, it can be used in remote areas that lack appropriate infrastructure. The result is displayed directly on the device and sent via Bluetooth or WLAN to any other device such as a smartphone. Since SaLux can detect m-RNA viruses, it can be adapted to detect other mRNA viruses, such as dengue, HIV, and bird flu. This will require the development of specific
primers that selectively recognize the particular virus of interest.
| Start-up | phase |
| Area: | Point-of-care device to detect mRNA viruses and mRNA fragments. |
| Goal/ Vision: | We aim to provide a small portable device that can deliver results comparable to those obtained by more expensive PCR equipment. This is particularly relevant as a POC device and for remote areas in low-income regions. |
| Institute: | Originally developed at the Max-Planck-Institute of Experimental Medicine in Göttingen, now the Max-Planck-Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences (Göttingen). |
| Contact: | stuehmer@mpinat.mpg.de |