Japan allows saliva-based tests to boost coronavirus detection

The saliva-based tests are able to be given to those who have had symptoms for up to nine days, the health ministry said. It wasn't immediately clear how much the change would boost overall testing capacity.

Reuters

June 02, 2020 / 20:07 IST

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Japan on Tuesday approved saliva-based tests for the coronavirus, offering a safer, simpler way to diagnose infection than nasal swabs as it looks to boost its testing rates.

Hours after the approval, the Tokyo government issued a stay-at-home alert following an increase in infections.

Currently, nasal swabs are the main source for tests in Japan, but these can expose medical workers to coughs and sneezes at the time of collection, making it necessary for them to wear full protective gear.

The saliva-based tests are able to be given to those who have had symptoms for up to nine days, the health ministry said. It wasn't immediately clear how much the change would boost overall testing capacity.

"This will vastly reduce burdens on patients as well as burdens that come with infection-prevention steps on the part of sample-collecting institutions," Health Minister Katsunobu Kato told reporters.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.

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