STMicro launches bird flu detection chip

Europe's leading chip vendor, STMicroelectronics, has said it has successfully developed a mobile chip that can detect both types of influenza viruses, including human influenza.

The new device functions as a mini-lab on a chip, can display and identify multiple disease-specific and gene classes with just one diagnostic test within 2 hours. Meanwhile, with other experiments, the detection of flu symptoms is only done with a specific disease class, and it takes days or weeks to get results.

New chips can distinguish between human influenza A and B virus samples; resistance patterns and mutations, including bird flu or H5N1. According to the World Health Organization, 236 people have died from H5N1 so far globally.

VereFlu chip was developed by STMicro and Singapore's Veredus Laboratory after one year of research. Currently the application of this chip is being tested at Singapore National University Hospital.

(Photo: Reuters)