Please describe your proposed solution.
The COVID-19 pandemic is caused by a new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). According to the World Health Organization (WHO), by the 20th of February 2022, the COVID-19 pandemic affected 220 countries, areas, and territories with more than 492 million confirmed cases and more than 6.1 million deaths (<https://covid19.who.int/>).
To control the disease, the diagnosis and confirmation of cases are crucial. Currently, reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) and later on antigen-based lateral flow tests were implemented as officially approved methods to detect SARS-CoV-2 in the clinical samples. However, the Real-time PCR technique is time-consuming and can only be performed in a limited number of laboratories, hospitals, and major healthcare centers. In addition to requiring strict technical procedures, Real-time PCR testing comes with a high cost and time-consuming process. Moreover, the current Real-time PCR systems are bulky, complex, and expensive, making it challenging to implement widespread deployment.
Next, loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) is an isothermal amplification technique and can perform at a constant temperature between 60°C and 65°C. LAMP exhibits several advantages e.g., high specificity, high sensitivity, fast amplification, and more resistance to inhibitors than PCR. The simplicity in controlling the constant temperature when compared with thermal cyclers of PCR, LAMP technics demonstrated a simple design and fast detection creating a high potential for real-time and point-of-care devices (POC). With these advantages, the LAMP may be an alternative to PCR in rapid POC diagnostic applications. Moreover, the Real-time LAMP technique is also employed in testing for other disease-causing agents such as various viruses, bacteria, and other pathogenic microorganisms. Besides healthcare, Real-time LAMP is applied in testing for livestock, poultry, food safety, and numerous other fields.
Therefore, we propose creating a handheld Real-time LAMP prototype with IoT and Blockchain integration, allowing for real-time management and statistical analysis of infections and facilitating seamless tracking of infection cases.
The objective of this project is to produce a prototype of a medical device that integrates IoT and Blockchain, reducing costs and time for Real-time LAMP testing while providing real-time and transparent data. This will facilitate easier management and statistical analysis of infection cases and enable timely and effective measures in response to disease outbreaks.
How does your proposed solution address the challenge and what benefits will this bring to the Cardano ecosystem?
Proposal to address the challenge of:
“Hardware - Hardware wallets, IoT devices connected to Cardano, Local ATMs for interacting with the blockchain, others…”
Our proposed solution addresses the challenge by producing a handheld Real-time LAMP prototype with IoT and Blockchain integration. By incorporating IoT, we enable seamless data collection and transmission, automating the storage and retrieval of test results. Integrating Blockchain technology ensures data transparency, immutability, and security.
The benefits this solution brings to the Cardano ecosystem are manifold.
Firstly, it enhances healthcare infrastructure by providing a cost-effective and efficient tool for real-time management and analysis of infection cases. This improves disease control and response capabilities, fostering a healthier population.
Secondly, the integration of IoT and Blockchain technology aligns with Cardano's vision of empowering individuals through secure, decentralized systems. By enabling individuals to access and manage their health data securely, it enhances privacy and patient empowerment within the ecosystem.
Lastly, the widespread adoption of this solution can contribute to the overall growth and development of the Cardano ecosystem. It showcases the versatility and practicality of Cardano's technology in various industries beyond finance, expanding its use cases and attracting more stakeholders to the ecosystem.
Overall, our solution addresses the challenge of efficient disease management while aligning with the principles and objectives of the Cardano ecosystem, bringing benefits in terms of improved healthcare, individual empowerment, and ecosystem growth.
How do you intend to measure the success of your project?
We can provide the Cardano developer ecosystem with the following metrics for evaluation:
- A handheld Real-time LAMP analyzer machine has the following main parameters:
- DNA amplification heating system uses self-developed technology of the subject with the ability to control temperature with high accuracy.
- Optical system: Real-time pathogen detection by fluorescence with FAM/SYBR Green I single-channel optical system (center wavelength absorption at 494 nm and emission at 518 nm). Open design optical system allows changing other color channels such as VIC/JOE, NED/TAMRA/Cy3, ROX/Texas Red by simply changing the filter.
- Quantitative LAMP run time: less than 50 minutes, run time can be tailored to each application by varying the temperature and time of the LAMP reaction.
- Automated control, data acquisition and results analysis, data conversion, and transmission to the monitoring system via IoT, Blockchain.
- The number of test samples is recorded on the Blockchain.
- Number of organizations using Point-of-Care Real-time LAMP analyzer.
Please describe your plans to share the outputs and results of your project?
To share the outputs and results of our project, we have the following plans:
- Project Reports (PoM and PoA):
We will submit a Statement of Milestones (SoM) which will be published, reviewed, and approved by Community Reviewers. In each Milestone, we will public Proof of Achievement (PoA) to provide evidence that the milestone for which we have already been paid has been achieved.
- Release outputs/results on our website
We will outputs/results on our website at C2VN where interested individuals can access our update proactively. Discuss or query us any topics they prefer.
- Share outputs/results to social platforms (Cardano Forum, Facebook, telegram, twitter, youtube and github):
These will be places we share updates, success stories, and best practices. These will allow us to reach a larger audience and gather feedback and suggestions from the community, fostering a collaborative approach to decentralized identity adoption