Universität Leipzig: Ceruti-Inhaltsseite

Africa Suitcaselab is a project funded by the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) and an African-European partnership for development and deployment of rapid SARS-CoV-2 RNA and antigen detection assays by the Botnar Research Centre for Child Health (BRCCH). Both contain a multi-country blinded phase 2 study to evaluate rapid detection systems of SARS-COV-2.

Left: suitcase lab, for mastermix preparation and assay performance; right: secure glove box for safe sample inactivation and handling — The suitcase lab (left) and glove box (right), used together as a mobile laboratory set-up.

Suitcase lab presented to the president of Ghana — The suitcase lab presented in Ghana.

THE PROJECT

Our main aim is to evaluate 3 different point of need systems (isothermal amplification, peakPCR and rapid antigen test) ) for SARS-COV-2 through a multi-country blinded study and its implementation in low resource settings. Learn more about our projects

The consortium consists of 3 European Partners (coordination and assay development) as well as 7 North and Sub-Saharan partners (diagnostic evaluation). Learn more about who we are

Objectives

Our main objectives

Diagnostic accuracy determination of point of need assays
Determining the diagnostic accuracy of point of need assays (isothermal amplification, peakPCR and rapid antigen test).
International collaboration
Building cross border collaboration involving 9 countries from Europe, North and Sub-Saharan Africa.
Capacity building
Building capacity for safe handling of BSL-3 pathogens using the glove box.
Suitcase lab implementation
Implementation of the suitcase lab for rapid detection of SARS-COV-2.

Expected impact
Once validated, the suitcase lab can be deployed at point of entry, walk-through test centers as well as remote areas for outbreak investigations. The suitcase lab will pave the way for rapid identification of infected cases and enhance prompt management as well as immediate implementation of control measures against the spread of SARS-COV-2.

2. International collaboration

Building cross border collaboration involving 9 countries from Europe, North and Sub-Saharan Africa.

3. Capacity building

Building capacity for safe handling of BSL-3 pathogens using the glove box.

4. Suitcase lab implementation

Implementation of the suitcase lab for rapid detection of SARS-COV-2.

Expected impact

Once validated, the suitcase lab can be deployed at point of entry, walk-through test centers as well as remote areas for outbreak investigations. The suitcase lab will pave the way for rapid identification of infected cases and enhance prompt management as well as immediate implementation of control measures against the spread of SARS-COV-2.

Background

COVID-19 has emerged as a new viral disease in late 2019 and has rapidly spread and developed into a global pandemic with severe health and economic impact. Although real-time RT-PCR is currently used as the standard method for SARS-COV-2 molecular diagnosis, it requires a well-established laboratory, specifically trained personnel, is time-consuming (2-5 hours) and thus involves high costs altogether. Therefore, the need of other rapid and simple diagnostic approaches maintaining the high performance of RT-PCR is of utmost urgency.

Background

Point-of-need

peakPCR

In the past 3 years, Prof. Stark´s at the Swiss Federal Institute of…

Antigen Test

Dr. Vörös group at ETH is developing an electrochemically enhanced…

The group from Germany, France, and seven African countries are…

Suitcase lab advantages

The size of the suitcase is 62+49+30 cm, which is easy to carry, transport and ship. A glove box will be used to inactivate the samples to avoid contamination of the environment and keep the health care worker safe.
Power source from solar panel with power pack.
Easy to be implemented in low resource settings.
Cold chain independence as reagents can be kept at 38-40°C ambient temperature for months without any effect on the assay performance.
A tight waste container allowing autoclaving or incinerating waste to avoid contamination of the environment.
Rapid time to result around 20 minutes including the extraction procedure.

Suitcase lab

Glove box for sample inactivation

The team

This project is funded by the EDCTP and the BRCCH. This project is a collaboration between partners in Ghana, Senegal, Madagascar, Nigeria, DR Congo, Sudan and Uganda, where the field activities will take place, and partners in Germany, France and Switzerland involved with development and refinement of the SARS-COV-2 rapid diagnostic tests.

Involved partners

Uganda

Dr. Julius Boniface Okuni, College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity
Makerere University

Germany

Dr. Ahmed Abd El Wahed, Lead coordinator
Leipzig University
Prof. Dr. Uwe Truyen, Head of data management
Leipzig University
Prof. Dr. Manfred Weidmann, Institute of Microbiology & Virology
Brandenburg Medical School

France

Dr. Anavaj Sakuntabhai, Functional Genetics of Infectious Diseases Unit
Institut Pasteur Paris

Ghana

Dr. Michael Frimpong, Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine
KCCR

Senegal

Dr. Dia Ndongo
Institut Pasteur de Dakar
Dr Jean-Michel Heraud
Institut Pasteur de Dakar

Madagascar

Dr. Philippe Dussart
Institut Pasteur de Madagascar

Nigeria

Prof. Olusegun George Ademowo
University of Ibadan

DR Congo

Dr. Sheila Makiala, Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale du Zaire
INRB

Sudan

Dr. Kamal Eltom
University of Khartoum

Switzerland

Pro. Vörös Janos, Institute for Biomedical Engineering
ETH Zürich
Prof. Wendelin Stark, Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences
ETH Zürich
Dr. Michele Gregorini, Post-doc resarcher
ETH Zürich -D-CHAB
Dr. Alexander Tanno, Post-doc researcher
ETH Zürich-D-ITET