---
title: "MIT Invents $6 COVID-19 Test Using CRISPR"
description: "A new COVID-19 test uses CRISPR molecules to hunt for the coronavirus. And while more testing is needed, it could cost as little as $6."
date: "2020-05-05"
modified: "2020-05-05"
authors:
  - name: "Dan Robitzski"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/danrobitzski"
url: "https://futurism.com/neoscope/mit-covid19-test-crispr"
categories:
  - "Developments"
  - "Health & Medicine"
tags:
  - "coronavirus"
  - "covid19"
  - "medicine"
---

# MIT Invents $6 COVID-19 Test Using CRISPR

![A new COVID-19 test uses CRISPR molecules to hunt for the coronavirus. And while more testing is needed, it could cost as little as $6.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/MIT-Invents-6-dollar-COVID-19-Test-Using-CRISPR.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Blake Wiles/Air Force\</em\>*

A new coronavirus test uses gene-hacking tech to determine whether someone is sick with COVID-19 — and it only costs $6 to make.

Because there are still too few tests to go around, a pair of MIT researchers set out to build something to be as low-cost and self-contained as possible, *[The New York Times ](<https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/05/health/crispr-coronavirus-covid-test.html>)*[reports](<https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/05/health/crispr-coronavirus-covid-test.html>). The result is a two-step test that uses CRISPR to scan a [patient's saliva](<https://futurism.com/neoscope/fda-approved-test-scans-spit-coronavirus>) or nasal swab for signs of the coronavirus' genetic code.

"We're excited that this could be a solution that people won't have to rely on a sophisticated and expensive laboratory to run," said Feng Zhang, a researcher at MIT and the Broad Institute who developed the test, told the *NYT*.

The [test's website](<https://www.stopcovid.science/>) makes it very clear that it's not approved for clinical use yet. As the *NYT* reports, the test performed well in early experiments, but their scope was limited — the researchers only administered it to 12 sick patients and a control group of five healthy people.

Here's how it works: The patient's nasal swab or saliva is deposited into a tube with chemicals that rip open viruses. The concoction is then dropped into a second tube full of CRISPR molecules that search for the coronavirus. In order to work, that second tube needs to stay at 140 degrees Fahrenheit for a full hour.

The test gives results similar to those of an at-home pregnancy test, the *NYT* reports. A strip of paper is dipped in, and if two lines appear, the test was positive.

The researchers behind the test told the *NYT* that they're talking to manufacturers to mass-produce a one-vial version, which they hope can help solve the testing crisis in the U.S.

## Author
Dan Robitzki is a senior reporter for Futurism, where he likes to cover AI, tech ethics, and medicine. He spends his extra time fencing and streaming games from Los Angeles, California.

### Author social links  
[Twitter](<https://x.com/danrobitzski>)