Dr. Zaghloul’s Team Develops Nano Device to Diagnose COVID-19 Instantly

Researchers in the GW Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) have developed a nanoscale device that could allow public health professionals to immediately diagnose and track COVID-19 infection and wirelessly send the result to personal cell phones. The work is being done under the supervision of ECE professor, Dr. Mona Zaghloul, and in collaboration with the National Institute of Standards and Technology. 

Dr. Zaghloul and her Ph.D. students originally developed the device in collaboration with the National Institute of Standards and Technology to detect and distinguish different species of gas. Dr. Jeanne Jordan, in GW’s Milken Institute School of Public Health, was instrumental in recognizing the potential diagnostic capabilities of the technology for the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and she joined Dr. Zaghloul in the project.

The team’s goal is to develop an in-home testing device for COVID-19 that would be available to any person who would like to test. The device uses a thin sheet of gold coated with virus-specific proteins that can bind with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Once the SARS-CoV-2 virus binds, the wavelength of light bouncing off the surface changes, creating a different color of light. This change in light color can be detected by a smartphone camera and an app with algorithms designed to detect the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The test has the potential to provide results within minutes and the results can then be sent to healthcare professionals or public health databases using the app on the patient's mobile device.

The biopharmaceutical company Hoth Therapeutics, Inc. entered into a Sponsored Research Agreement with GW in September to develop the device.

"Our research team is very pleased that Hoth Therapeutics has decided to partner with GW to develop this important SARS-CoV-2 virus detection system," said Dr. Zaghloul. Our device has great potential to help in the fight against COVID-19, and we are proud to be able to contribute to stopping the spread of the disease."