A drop of blood from a fingertip lands on the white membrane of a cartridge. Twenty minutes later, the phone shows whether Lyme disease is present or not. No test tube, no centrifuge, no waiting for days.
Usually, for such a test, blood is first spun in a centrifuge to separate the liquid part — the plasma. Only in plasma do they look for antibodies (protective proteins the body produces against bacteria). The new cartridge does this itself: inside are several filter layers, like in a coffee maker. Blood cells get trapped, while plasma seeps through and reaches a strip with a special pattern of Borrelia proteins — the bacteria that cause Lyme disease. If antibodies are present in the plasma, they stick to the pattern, and the strip changes color.
The smartphone photographs the strip, and a machine learning program compares the color with a reference. In tests on 62 blood samples, the test correctly identified the disease and its absence in 97% of cases. Time from prick to answer is 20 minutes.
Lyme disease is transmitted by ticks. If antibiotic treatment is started within the first weeks, the person recovers completely. Every day of delay is a risk that the bacteria spread to joints, heart, and nerves. A test that doesn't require sending blood to a lab shortens this path to a single doctor's visit.
A drop of blood, a white membrane, a phone in hand. Twenty minutes later, a person knows whether they need to take medication urgently. Thus, simple filtration, like in a coffee maker, becomes a shield against the tick-borne threat.
Borrelia are spiral bacteria, resembling tiny corkscrews. They screw into tissues and can hide from the immune system for years.