Spanish Scientists Develop The First Rapid Covid Test For Pets

Spanish Scientists Develop The First Rapid Covid Test For Pets.

A multidisciplinary team of Spanish researchers from Aragón have developed a rapid test for the serological diagnosis against SARS-CoV-2 in domestic pets, which can be used in a simple way, in situ, and without the need to wait for laboratory results.

María Dolores Pérez Cabrejas, professor of Food Technology at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Zaragoza, has been the main researcher in the project.

Financed by Banco Santander.

The Covid-19 Santander-Unizar Program of Technological Innovation Projects for the year 2020 together with the University of Zaragoza, and the Vice-Rector’s Office for Technological Transfer and Innovation carried out the research which was financed by Banco Santander.

The development of this test has been the result of the interdisciplinary collaboration of different groups who have extensive experience in the development of immunochemical techniques.

To carry out this project, the team also had the collaboration of the Aragonese biotechnology company Zeulab, which made the R&D laboratory equipment available to the project and participated in the preparation and validation of the prototype of the test that was eventually developed.

Pets are exposed to the virus as well as humans.

The University of Zaragoza has indicated that pets living with people with coronavirus are exposed to the virus and the risk of infection by SARS-CoV-2 cannot be ruled out. From an epidemiological point of view, the role that domestic pets can play in this infection is still unknown.

Given this lack of information, the researchers had wanted to develop specific diagnostic tests to be used in the veterinary field, this being one of the priority objectives set out by the World Organization for Animal Health.

During the research, it was observed that some of the pets living with infected people had developed antibodies against SARS-CoV-2.

The Euro Weekly News is running a campaign to help reunite Brits in Spain with their family and friends by capping the costs of PCR tests for travel. Please help us urge the government to cap costs at https://euroweeklynews.com/2021/04/16/ewn-champions-the-rights-of-brits-in-spain-to-see-loved-ones-again/