LAUSR

Significance “Am I positive or negative?” Everyone wants to know the answer with speed and accuracy. Rapid and accurate at-home testing is the best defense against the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing endemics. Current rapid tests are often imprecise, test for denatured and processed viral components, and lack specificity for new variants. We developed a simple at-home test using saliva swabs that answers “positive or negative” in minutes and transmits results to stakeholders. The test uses a DNA aptamer-derivatized graphene field-effect transistor (GFET) to detect unprocessed intact SARS-CoV-2 and its variants at levels as low as 7 to 10 viruses. This method is tunable and adaptable for early-stage detection of emerging viral infections as well as many diseases with accessible biofluids.