Boğaziçi University Team Develops Coronavirus Detection Kit

The number of confirmed cases of Coronavirus disease (COVID 19) worldwide has exceeded 220,000, with over 9,000 deaths. While the world watches the Coronavirus with concern, three specialists who are graduates of Boğaziçi University – Elif Akyüz, Serhat Pala and Onur Bilenoğlu – have begun exporting detection kits with high accuracy rates that they recently developed to the world. The Boğaziçi University Corporate Communications Office spoke with Boğaziçi alumni on the front lines of fighting Coronavirus about the pandemic threatening the world and their work. As the new coronavirus (COVID 19) pandemic affects the entire world except Antarctica, Boğaziçi University alumni continue their work to combat the virus. Through intensive research and development efforts, working day and night, the Coronavirus detection kits they developed are already being exported to dozens of countries. The specialists responding to our questions emphasize that the Coronavirus will be brought under control and that panic is unnecessary, saying they are proud to work in this field as Boğaziçi alumni.

20 YEARS OF FIGHTING VIRUSES

Onur Bilenoğlu completed his bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and Genetics at Boğaziçi University, then completed his master's and doctoral degrees in the same field at Boğaziçi. Since 2002, he has been developing equipment for the detection of viruses and bacteria at companies working in molecular biology and genetics. Bilenoğlu and his team achieved results in the Coronavirus kit after an intensive 2-month R&D period. Noting that they achieved high accuracy rates, Bilenoğlu states: "I have been working in this field for approximately 20 years. Thanks to the kit we developed in two months, we can detect the virus with 99.5% accuracy within 3 hours. Our molecular test focuses only on coronavirus, which allows us to reach highly sensitive results. It was specifically designed based on the Coronavirus RNA (Ribonucleic Acid). That is why our results have very high accuracy rates," he says.

'DEMAND HAS SURGED'

Bilenoğlu says the kit developed by A1 Life Sciences, an Istanbul-based firm where he serves as general director, has been exported to approximately 15 countries and demand has surged in recent weeks. Noting that the Ministry of Industry and Technology has brought together domestic kit-producing companies, Bilenoğlu adds the following: "We are currently exporting our domestic kit to 10-15 countries. Demand has surged in recent months. Our annual production is sold out within weeks. A kit that costs EUR 2-3 is sold for USD 6-7. Recently, we met with Deputy Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır. As a ministry, they have visited domestic companies working on coronavirus and assessed the sector." 'THE OUTBREAK MAY CONTINUE THROUGH THE SUMMER' Bilenoğlu believes there is confusion about when the Coronavirus outbreak will end. Emphasizing that there are current examples worldwide of the virus not losing its impact during the summer months, he says: "There are many different views. It is thought that the virus will lose its effect during the summer months. However, the outbreak continues in Southern Hemisphere countries that are currently experiencing summer. This raises concerns that the virus could continue to have an impact unless a cure or vaccine is found against it. I think the outbreak will continue for another 6 months," he says.

'WE WORK DAY AND NIGHT TO FIGHT CORONAVIRUS'

Elif Akyüz, founder and R&D Director of Istanbul-based Anatolia Geneworks, is another Boğaziçi University graduate who works day and night against Coronavirus. Akyüz, who completed her undergraduate and graduate studies in molecular biology and genetics at Boğaziçi, is an expert whose work has attracted attention not only in Turkey but around the world. Making statements to foreign media regarding Coronavirus, Akyüz emphasizes that they work continuously and enthusiastically: "Our reliable diagnostic kits play an important role in preventing outbreaks, starting treatment at the right time and in the right way, and reducing deaths to a minimum. Our objective in entering this field was to contribute to human health by developing and producing high-performance and quality products. My team is aware of our special role in fighting this outbreak. We work enthusiastically for long hours. We are aware of the responsibility we have undertaken and are making particular efforts to take good care of ourselves during this process."

'WE GET RESULTS IN 1 HOUR 40 MINUTES'

The kits developed by Akyüz also use advanced real-time PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) technology. Akyüz states that when an RNA sample obtained from a patient is added, Coronavirus can be detected within 1 hour 40 minutes: "Like most of our products, this kit works with 'real-time PCR,' an advanced molecular technique. This allows the virus in the patient sample to be detected directly. For the kit to work, a throat or nasal swab sample or sputum is first taken from the patient and RNA isolation is performed. This is approximately a 45-minute procedure. After that, the RNA sample is mixed with our kit and placed in a device. Then the result is obtained through 1 hour 40 minutes of analysis. Results obtained with our kit in approximately 200,000 patients in the field across various countries have been very successful. It has 100% accuracy and very high sensitivity."

'OUR KITS WERE USED IN THE ITALIAN PARLIAMENT'

Akyüz and her team took action when the first news of the outbreak came from China in December 2019. After three weeks of intensive work, they achieved results. The scientist particularly shares information that her kits are being used extensively in Italy and Iran, saying: "From the moment we heard the first news coming from China in December 2019, we were already monitoring the situation. The kit design, verification and validation took approximately three weeks. We had to act faster than we usually do. However, we developed the kit within our usual strict quality procedures. We had the opportunity to send our kits to Italy and Iran, where the outbreak was very severe at that time, and see data coming from the field. Our kits were actively used in all healthcare institutions in Lombardia, the epicenter of the outbreak that halted life in Italy. In fact, our kits were also preferred in tests in the Italian Parliament. We learned that our kits have played a very important role in Iran as well," she says.

'WE SENT OVER 200,000 TEST KITS'

Akyüz and her team's more than 200 products are exported to 50 countries. The scientist states that over 200,000 Coronavirus kits have been exported so far. Noting that they are working at full capacity to meet incoming requests, Akyüz continues: "More than 200 of our products are exported to approximately 50 countries. Our kit is used in countries experiencing the coronavirus outbreak such as Italy, England, France, Poland, Romania, Ukraine, Portugal, Georgia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Turkmenistan, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain and Iran. While the test kits sent so far have exceeded 200,000, we continue production at full capacity to meet new requests."

'DON'T PANIC'

The scientist warns against misinformation in the media and on social media, emphasizing that panic is unnecessary. She explains that the new coronavirus is contagious but not one of the deadliest viruses in the world: "It is very important for the public to be informed, to disregard misinformation and to strictly apply the correct precautions without panicking. The new coronavirus is highly contagious but not one of the deadliest viruses in the world. The disease, which particularly affects people over 60 years of age with lung, blood pressure, diabetes and heart problems, can be fatal for those over 80. This is why the death rate in Italy is very high. It is very important that people over a certain age really stay home, cut contact even with their children and grandchildren, and avoid crowded places. Therefore, it is necessary for the entire world to draw lessons from this outbreak, to approach future outbreaks with greater preparedness and composure, and to be better equipped in terms of diagnosis and treatment."

'WE CAN GET RESULTS IN 3-5 MINUTES'

The work of Boğaziçi alumni in fighting Coronavirus is not limited to Turkey. Serhat Pala, who graduated from Boğaziçi University's Economics Department and then moved to the USA in 1998 with his wife Zeynep Ilgaz, also a graduate of the same program, founded the San Diego-based medical equipment company Confirm Bioscience with his wife in 2008. Their company, which has won numerous entrepreneurship awards, is among the leading kit producers for Coronavirus in the USA today. Serhat Pala says that when the outbreak emerged in China, they worked with the Chinese Government and that the kit they developed produces results within 3-5 minutes: "When Coronavirus first appeared, we decided to work with our Chinese manufacturer partners. We knew the world would need detection kits and we directed our R&D efforts in this direction. The difficult part was finding samples for clinical tests, and the Chinese Government was very helpful in this regard. Using PCR analysis, we can get results within 3-5 minutes. The accuracy rate is 97.3%. Our tests are the best-selling retail tests in the USA."

'COUNTRIES MAY FACE IMPORT PROBLEMS'

Pala emphasizes that kit demand has increased significantly but countries may face problems with permits and imports. Noting that working together with his wife Zeynep Ilgaz, as Boğaziçi alumni, in fighting Coronavirus feels good, he says: "It feels good to be involved in fighting humanity's common enemy. We focused on how much we could do and how quickly. Even just making life easier for people who are reluctant to see their elderly grandparents is a great thing," he says.

'I HOPE THERE WILL BE AN AWAKENING'

Pala, reminding that death rates are in the range of 1-3%, says the world may experience an "awakening" regarding pandemic diseases: "The risk of a global pandemic disease was not something we thought much about. Bill Gates had warned about this years ago. I honestly did not think humanity was so unprepared. I do not even want to think about what would happen if we faced an outbreak with a 10% death rate, when Coronavirus is 1-3%. I hope this will cause an awakening for humanity. But for now, we should focus on the positive and think about what we can change. We will have time later to think about mistakes and shortcomings. This is not the time for that."