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A new analysis that can identify almost any virus that might affect any individual or animal has been presented at the University of St. Louis. A universal diagnosis for health problems can be cheaper and would need a shorter time, as other studies are not needed anymore.
With this single test, specialists do not have to know in advance exactly what they are looking for. It molds a wide net of criteria and can effectively identify a virus that is present at very early stages of the disease. Experts think this evaluation will be very useful in circumstances where a result continues to be unclear after conventional examination. Other situations in which the cause of an illness is still unidentified could offer further clues to the doctors.
The new test, named ViroCap, can identify viruses not observed through normal examination depending on gene sequencing. This analysis might be used to capture potentially deadly viruses like marburg, ebola or severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), or more typical viruses like norovirus and rotavirus.
American scientists made the technology that they developed openly available to physicians and doctors across the world.
The method was compared to a pair of biological samples from sufferers of various health problems at the St. Louis medical center. The new analysis discovered viruses in five children whose earlier diagnosis had missed. For another test, the new method identified three other viruses that have been skipped by conventional diagnosis, along with a respiratory problem caused by the human adenovirus type 3A.
The sensors are so delicate that they can find almost all variants of these viruses that are genetically related. Slight inherited modifications among viruses usually cannot be identified by our available diagnosis and confuse physicians’ abilities to see all versions with only one analysis
Because these tests contain specific genetic data about different versions of specific viruses, their sub types are easily recognized by the current method. This is one of the advantages offered by multiple cross tests performed by specialists. Such diagnoses are used during the extensive evaluation of the patients’ health state in early stages of a medical affection.
It could be also possible to alter the prognosis to be used in the identification of other infections. Here are included health problems caused by various sub types of micro organisms, such as fungi, bacteria and other parasites. Genetic tests could indicate if the virus is immune to conventional treatments with common medication or more powerful drugs.
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