A novel assay developed by Birmingham University’s School of Chemistry can determine if a virus is infectious or not, which could revolutionise the response to future pandemics.
FAIRY for faster viral infectivity detection
FAIRY (Fluorescence Assay for vIRal integritY) can screen viruses against virucidal antivirals in minutes, allowing mitigative measures against infectious viruses to be quickly employed.
Led by Dr Samuel Jones, an assistant professor at the University of Birmingham's School of Chemistry, the method was developed to eliminate the reliance on cultured cell line testing, which can take significantly longer and requires assessment by specialist staff.
The assay uses a dye capable of penetrating viruses through pores in the capsid, though the dye is modified to prevent it from penetrating these pores.
When the dye binds to viral genetic material, it provides a fluorescent signal, allowing users to rapidly determine if a virus is intact — and therefore infectious.
FAIRY proves effective for a range of viruses
The researchers have evaluated the effectiveness of the assay using a number of viral models, and has been proven to work in enveloped and non-enveloped DNA and RNA viruses.
Dr Jones said: “This simple, low-cost, assay uses ready-made consumables, and can rapidly screen multiple disinfectants and viruses in a single microplate assay. It could have screened every disinfectant for antiviral activity during the COVID-19 and so deliver a more rapid response during the next pandemic.”
University of Birmingham Enterprise has filed a patent application covering the compounds, their methods and use in determining the viral integrity of virus samples.
The company is now seeking commercial partners for licensing or collaboration and expects a high level of interest from companies using virucidal ISO standard testing, testing/screening companies and contract research organisations.
Reference
1 https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.biomac.4c00358
