On March 12, the West China Hospital affiliated to Sichuan University donated a batch of isothermal nucleic acid amplification microfluidic chip analyzers and nucleic acid test kits, which can detect and distinguish six respiratory viruses, including the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), to Georgian government.
The virus detection kit, jointly developed by the hospital, Tsinghua University in Beijing and a Chengdu-based biotech company under the guidance of renowned Chinese respiratory specialist Zhong Nanshan and epidemiologist Li Lanjuan, was approved and accepted February 22 by China's National Medical Products Administration. With secretion samples collected from patients' noses and throats, the kit can detect six common respiratory viruses including the COVID-19 all at once within 1.5 hours, which could improve detection precision and help patients get treated quickly.
As of 12 pm on March 11, 23 people in Georgia had tested positive for the COVID-19. Having learned of the effectiveness of the virus test kit, the embassy of Georgia in China, on behalf of the Georgian government, sought help from the government of Sichuan Province. The Sichuan provincial government assigned the hospital to donate the medical supplies.
