Researchers in Singapore have invented a handheld device that can detect the H5N1 bird flu virus within 30 minutes, from raw throat swab samples.

Not only does the ingenious device help circumvent the lengthy laboratory tests available at the moment, but it is also considerably less expensive, which allows for hope that the infections can be prevented from turning into a pandemic with such new means.

Researchers at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology in Singapore have created a prototype device that is able to identify the deadly H5N1 flu virus in less than 30 minutes.

The device is able to isolate, purify and amplify viral RNA from raw throat swabs, reducing the four hours necessary for a lab test to a mere 30 minutes. It is also significantly less costly – a single test could be as cheap as $0.20.

Its creators say in a study published in the online version of the journal Nature Medicine that the device could be adapted to detect SARS, HIV and Hepatitis B.

The scientists say the new device would be especially beneficial in poorer countries that are lacking in public health resources. Rapid diagnosis of the first cases would be essential in order to contain a global bird flu pandemic.

The new device, which is handheld, cheap and easy to use, as well as reliable – a bona fide mini-lab, could prove a good solution for local testing.

“To halt a pandemic emerging in low-resource settings, there is a need for low-cost, easy-to-use handheld units that decentralize testing,” the authors, led by Dr. Juergen Pipper, wrote in the study.

Bloomberg reports that Pipper revealed in a telephone interview that the prototype device weighs about 200 grams, is about the size of a Rubik's cube and a test could cost as little as 20 to 50 cents.

H5N1 is a disease mostly found in birds. Humans become contaminated only if they forego basic hygienic standards. Scientists fear though that the virus could mutate and become transmissible from human to human.

This could lead to a pandemic, killing millions of people.