A team of researchers from Khalifa University has developed a portable Covid-19 testing kit that can deliver the results in just 45 minutes.
Researchers used the Loop-mediated Isothermal Amplification method (Lamp), which is a newer technique compared to PCR nasal swab test, a common laboratory method for detecting, tracking and studying Covid-19.
Currently in the clinical validation stage, the new Lamp kit is a simple, easy and faster way to detect Covid-19.
In the Lamp method there is no need for any sophisticated equipment as the kit performs the detection test directly from a patient’s swab.
A simple colour change shows the result: pink for negative and yellow for positive.
PCR uses a thermal cycling approach to start the RNA replication process, which needs to be converted to DNA and detect the virus.
Lamp, on the other hand, uses a single temperature approach to get the same results.
The kits will remain useful even after the pandemic is over, as they can be used with any virus detecting primer.
The device is the size of an average smartphone.
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
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