The new test simplifies the testing method to a single step
and uses an alternative amplification method called Exponential Amplification
Reaction (EXPAR), said the university.
The new test can reduce testing time from 30 minutes to less
than five and deliver accurate results, local media reported.
It can be performed using standard laboratory equipment,
compared to Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests, which require higher
temperatures to separate out strands of DNA as part of the amplification
process, according to the university.
It came as England enters a national lockdown from Tuesday,
the third of its kind since the coronavirus pandemic began in Britain.
Scotland also enters a new lockdown from midnight on Monday,
as well as a shutdown of schools until Feb. 1, 2021.
To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain,
China, Germany, Russia and the U.S. have been racing against time to develop
coronavirus vaccines.
Xinhua/NAN