About That "Viral RNA-Based Diagnostics: Nanopore System"

I thought I’d take a brief break from Oxford Nanopore patents to look at a recent press release someone posted on the Discord (if you’re not already there, come check it out, lots of interesting stuff gets posted).

The press release discusses a new diagnostic approach suitable for targeted assays. Essentially a qPCR/molecular diagnostic tool. The difference here is that it uses a nanopore detection methodology rather than a fluorescent readout.

Potentially this means easier sample prep and improved sensitivity. I’m skeptical that such approaches will displace qPCR or other more traditional molecular testing approaches.

The press release cites a publication. But unfortunately the DOI doesn’t resolve and the publication listed doesn’t exist¹… so we’re forced to go patent hunting. This seems like the best match. So let’s have a look!