SARS-CoV-2 Serological Assay
We are presently at work on producing, testing, and validating antibodies for SARS-CoV-2 through the use of surface plasmon resonance (SPR) technology. It is our aim to develop a serological assay that would supplement the existing overstressed testing apparatus, helping to determine patients’ illness and immunity status, thus allowing earlier identification of infected individuals, as well as those who have already been sick and recovered alike. This would permit a more precise tailoring of our national quarantine and isolation protocols, helping to flatten the curve, as well as grant a sense of relief to the previously infected individuals dedicated to working on the front lines to combat this virus, who may have been asymptomatic during the course of their illness. Knowledge of who possesses in their sera the requisite antibodies to produce immunity to future COVID-19 exposure can produce more effective allocation of resources, human and otherwise, in hospital settings, as well as set minds at ease, providing a sense of security for these brave individuals in these uncertain times.