Turkish scientists are conducting a wide range of research and development programs at a university lab to help COVID-19 patients recover and find new ways to prevent the virus’ spread.
In exclusive interviews with Anadolu Agency (AA), the team at Bilkent University Institute of Materials Science and Nanotechnology (UNAM) in the capital Ankara described some of the fruits of their research, which include a rapid diagnosis kit for patients suspected of contracting COVID-19.
The kit is part of a biotechnological drug molecule research and development program for the virus, said professor Urartu Özgür Şafak Şeker. “We tried to make the kit as simple as possible so that people can use it at home. The patient can use swabs from their throat or saliva,” he added.
The program’s animal trials have already been successfully completed, Şeker said. “We’re making a design to produce the diagnostic kit entirely in our country. This way we hope to reduce external dependence as much as possible and to minimize problems in the supply chain,” he said.
Şeker and his team also support Turkish companies in developing COVID-19 antibody tests to reduce foreign market dependency.
The fiber and laser systems developed in another research program under the leadership of associate professor Bülend Ortaç aim to provide efficient alternative care solutions for COVID-19. “The treatment properties of the systems have been documented in intravenous applications performed on 10,000 patients. The results can be obtained by sending rays of given doses and wavelengths to the patient’s body using UV laser technology where the disease is populated,” he said.
