The National Health Research Institutes (NHRI) yesterday said it has developed a rapid-testing kit that can screen people for SARS-CoV-2, the strain of coronavirus that causes COVID-19, while the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said that such products have to be approved.
NHRI vice president Sytwu Huey-kang (司徒惠康) said that after more than a month of research, it has been shown that antibodies for SARS can also be used in the screening process for SARS-CoV-2.
The results can be produced in 10 to 15 minutes, Sytwu said.
Photo: AFP / National Institutes of Health
The NHRI is testing a number of coronaviruses to determine whether the reagent could be an exclusive test for COVID-19, he said.
The institutes next week would hold a meeting with businesses to discuss trial production of the kits, he said.
However, it is still uncertain when the kits might be ready for clinical use, he said.
Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) told the CECC’s daily news briefing yesterday that the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) would have to verify the NHRI’s product, as well as others introduced by private companies abroad.
The CDC would help accelerate commercialization if they prove effective, said Chen, who also heads the CECC.
In other developments, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) posted on Facebook yesterday that US biotechnology company Gilead Sciences began clinical research collaboration with experts in Taiwan on potential treatment options.
The AIT did not name any drug in the post, but the company is known for developing remdesivir, a drug hoped to be a treatment for COVID-19.
“Gilead’s clinical trials in Asia are also taking place in China, Japan, S[outh] Korea, Singapore and Hong Kong. Last week, AIT and Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced enhanced efforts to cooperate on addressing the spread of COVID-19. Scientific cooperation like this is one of the great examples of how we #StriveTogetherThriveTogether,” the AIT wrote.
Additional reporting by Lin Chia-nan
ENDEAVOR MANTA: The ship is programmed to automatically return to its designated home port and would self-destruct if seized by another party The Endeavor Manta, Taiwan’s first military-specification uncrewed surface vehicle (USV) tailor-made to operate in the Taiwan Strait in a bid to bolster the nation’s asymmetric combat capabilities made its first appearance at Kaohsiung’s Singda Harbor yesterday. Taking inspiration from Ukraine’s navy, which is using USVs to force Russia’s Black Sea fleet to take shelter within its own ports, CSBC Taiwan (台灣國際造船) established a research and development unit on USVs last year, CSBC chairman Huang Cheng-hung (黃正弘) said. With the exception of the satellite guidance system and the outboard motors — which were purchased from foreign companies that were not affiliated with Chinese-funded
PERMIT REVOKED: The influencer at a news conference said the National Immigration Agency was infringing on human rights and persecuting Chinese spouses Chinese influencer “Yaya in Taiwan” (亞亞在台灣) yesterday evening voluntarily left Taiwan, despite saying yesterday morning that she had “no intention” of leaving after her residence permit was revoked over her comments on Taiwan being “unified” with China by military force. The Ministry of the Interior yesterday had said that it could forcibly deport the influencer at midnight, but was considering taking a more flexible approach and beginning procedures this morning. The influencer, whose given name is Liu Zhenya (劉振亞), departed on a 8:45pm flight from Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) to Fuzhou, China. Liu held a news conference at the airport at 7pm,
Authorities yesterday elaborated on the rules governing Employment Gold Cards after a US cardholder was barred from entering Taiwan for six years after working without a permit during a 2023 visit. American YouTuber LeLe Farley was barred after already being approved for an Employment Gold Card, he said in a video published on his channel on Saturday. Farley, who has more than 420,000 subscribers on his YouTube channel, was approved for his Gold Card last month, but was told at a check-in counter at the Los Angeles International Airport that he could not enter Taiwan. That was because he previously participated in two
SECURITY RISK: If there is a conflict between China and Taiwan, ‘there would likely be significant consequences to global economic and security interests,’ it said China remains the top military and cyber threat to the US and continues to make progress on capabilities to seize Taiwan, a report by US intelligence agencies said on Tuesday. The report provides an overview of the “collective insights” of top US intelligence agencies about the security threats to the US posed by foreign nations and criminal organizations. In its Annual Threat Assessment, the agencies divided threats facing the US into two broad categories, “nonstate transnational criminals and terrorists” and “major state actors,” with China, Russia, Iran and North Korea named. Of those countries, “China presents the most comprehensive and robust military threat
RSS