Needle-free malaria detection with a light beam

Australian and Brazilian scientists have developed a fast, needle-free malaria detection tool that could help save hundreds of thousands of lives annually. Their research has been published in the journal PNAS Nexus.

Malaria is usually detected by a blood test, but the scientists have instead devised a device that shines a beam of harmless infrared light on a person’s ear or finger for 5–10 seconds, collecting an infrared signature that is processed by a computer algorithm. International team leader Dr Maggy Lord, from The University of Queensland (UQ), said the technology would revolutionise how malaria is fought globally.

“Currently it’s incredibly challenging to test large groups of people, such as the population of a village or town — you have to take blood from everyone and mix it with a reagent to get a result,” Lord said.

“But with this tool we can find out very quickly whether a whole village or town is suffering from, or carrying, malaria.”

Lord noted that the technique is chemical-free and needle-free — it’s literally just a flash on a person’s skin. The device is also smartphone-operated, so the results are acquired in real time.

According to Lord, the biggest challenge in eliminating malaria is the presence of asymptomatic people who act as a reservoir for transmission by mosquitoes. She said, “The World Health Organization has proposed large-scale surveillance in endemic areas and this non-invasive, affordable and rapid tool offers a way to achieve that.”

The technology could also help tackle other diseases, with Lord noting that it has been used to detect Zika and dengue as well as malaria.

“In our post-COVID world, it could be used to better tackle diseases as people move around the globe,” she said.

“We hope the tool could be used at ports of entry to screen travellers, minimising the reintroduction of diseases and reducing global outbreaks.

“It’s still early days, but this proof of concept is exciting.”

Image credit: iStock.com/itoodmuk