the first saliva test arrives

"A decisive step has been taken (…) I am convinced that this salivary screening test, EasyCov, will mark a real break in the fight against Covid-19." explains Franck Molina, researcher at CNRS. It would therefore be a considerable step forward. The creation of a reliable, quick and easy saliva test has been announced. Giving the result in about an hour, the latter is supposed to be marketed from June 2020. This discovery also places Montpellier at the heart of global research in the fight against Covid-19.

The biotechnology company Skillcell, from the CNRS research laboratory Sys2Diag, is at the origin of this saliva screening test. The first clinical trials carried out on 180 people seem to have been conclusive. This is why, they already arrive during June at least in marketing. The Alsatian company Firalis will sell them for 20 euros. The CNRS adds: "EasyCov can then be integrated into a more global offer which will be offered to the end customer and which may include logistics and the intervention of healthcare professionals." Alexandra Prieux, CEO of Skillcell, also explains "This is a strong innovation which has been designed, developed in France and which will also be produced on the territory. The development was achieved thanks to a diversity of local skills which helped to make it a complete solution that meets many expectations: emergency, safety, simplicity, economy, mobility… "

The possibility of having access to such tests brings a major challenge for the future. The fact of being able to massively screen the population is considered as the possibility of considering, perhaps, a deconfinement without a second wave of infections.

Coronavirus: Greta Thunberg offers $ 100,000 to fight the pandemic

Video by Clara Poudevigne