Scientists have developed a groundbreaking new face mask that can detect the presence of Covid thanks to a mouth filter made using ostrich cells.
The cells contain antibodies that bind to the virus and it is claimed the mask can identify coronavirus in exhaled breath by shining a fluorescent light on the mask, revealing patches of virus.
The mask has been developed by a research group, led by President Yasuhiro Tsukamoto of Kyoto Prefectural University in Japan, which says the LED light of a smartphone can also be used as a light source.
It uses antibodies extracted from ostrich eggs from birds that have been injected with an inactive, non-threatening form of Covid.
Ostriches are capable of producing different antibodies neutralising foreign entities in the body. By spraying the antibodies on a filter from a mask, the reaction can detect whether the virus is present.
President Tsukamoto and the group explained that they experimented over ten days with 32 Covid patients. They found that the masks they wore glowed under UV light.
The researchers said: "The ostrich antibody for corona placed on the mouth filter of the mask captures the coronavirus in coughing, sneezing, and water.
''Next, a fluorescent dye-labelled ostrich antibody is reacted and the virus is visualised by irradiating with light.
"We also succeeded in visualising the virus antigen on the ostrich antibody-carrying filter when using the LED ultraviolet black light and the LED light of the smartphone as the light source.
"This makes it easy to use on the mask even at home. Visualisation of the illness is possible.
"The presence of the virus can also be confirmed from the ostrich antibody-carrying mask used by a person infected with the new coronavirus for eight hours."
There are plans to sell inspection kits to the general public in Japan and further afield, potentially even this year, once a patent has been secured for the technology.
