Fast nucleic acid test developed in Shanghai

A nucleic acid testing reagent which can reveal the result within 90 minutes, developed by a Shanghai company, has been approved, the city market watchdog announced on Saturday. 

The 2019-nCoV nucleic acid testing reagent developed by Shanghai Rendu Biotechnology Co uses RNA specific target capturing and isothermal amplification real-time testing technologies and has achieved nucleic acid extraction and amplification in vitro, Shanghai Administration for Market Regulation said. 

It can achieve multiple-level parallel testing and its sensitivity and specificity are equal to the conventional polymerase chain reaction method. 

The reagent has been approved by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) under an emergency mechanism. 

A nucleic acid testing kit developed by Shanghai Fosun Long March Medical Science Co has also been approved by the NMPA. Another 23 coronavirus tests have previously been approved under the mechanism.