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Magnets diagnose malaria in minutes

Tabletop device detects metallic excrement of blood parasites

portable device with magnetic sensors for detecting malaria

MAGNETIC MALARIA  Magnetic sensors packed into a new portable device provide faster and more accurate diagnosis in a malaria mouse model than does current technology. 

Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology Centre

By Nsikan Akpan

- More than 2 years ago

Magnets might soon reveal brewing malaria infections long before symptoms appear. In mice, magnetic sensors take mere minutes to spot otherwise imperceptible levels of the parasitic blood infection, scientists report August 31 in Nature Medicine.