DEVELOPMENT OF COVID-19 DIAGNOSIS KIT

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As the coronavirus spreads worldwide, South Korean venture companies are boosting efforts to develop diagnosis kits for the infectious disease. One company has developed a kit that delivers swift and accurate test results that is being exported.

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This is a coronavirus detection kit developed by a venture firm based in Daejeon using only local materials. The whole process of sample extraction, analysis and diagnosis only takes two hours, compared to the current six. A small amount of one's secretion such as from snot or sputum is taken using cotton swabs to diagnose the RNA virus. This Polymerase Chain Reaction or PCR molecular test boasts an accuracy of 99%.

[Soundbite] YOO JAE-HYEONG(PRESIDENT, KIT DEVELOPER) : "We take pride in the accuracy rate that owes to the sensitivity and special traits of our detection kit compared to other products."

It's expected to assist in the swift confirmation of COVID-19 cases as well as the early discovery of people who came in contact with infected patients. On February 27th, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety issued an emergency approval so this newly-developed kit can be used at some 50 private medical institutions in the country. The kit has also been approved in Europe, paving the way for it to be exported. So far, units to test roughly 40-thousand people have been shipped to mainly China and Vietnam while shipment deals have been signed with 20 more countries, including Japan, as well as European and Middle Eastern nations.

[Soundbite] PARK YOUNG-SUN(MINISTER OF SMEs & STARTUPs) : "It's a great opportunity to prove that Korean technology is the world best in diagnosis amid the COVID-19 situation."

COVID-19 is highly contagious and its spread is rapid. Development of homegrown technology to prevent the spread of disastrous contagious diseases is gathering pace in Korea.