Simple paper blood test diagnoses disease faster and cheaper
Not everyone has access to a lab that can process blood tests, so this breakthrough will help people in developing nations diagnose disease faster.
Key takeaways
- Dutch and Japanese scientists have developed an inexpensive new paper-based blood test kit that quickly determines if patients have infectious diseases.
- Among other things, it could be of great help to clinicians in developing nations who don't have access to traditional lab equipment, and individuals who don’t have quick access to healthcare services.
- Should the person be infected, though, antibodies in their blood will bind to the sensor protein, blocking the second step to a certain extent – as a result, the light will at least partially remain blue.
Cite or link to this article
Griffin, M. (2019) 'Simple paper blood test diagnoses disease faster and cheaper', 311 Institute, 26 March. Available at: https://www.311institute.com/simple-paper-blood-test-helps-people-in-developing-nations-diagnose-disease-faster/ (Accessed: 8 October 2026).
Dutch and Japanese scientists have developed an inexpensive new paper-based blood test kit that quickly determines if patients have infectious diseases. Among other things, it could be of great help to clinicians in developing nations who don't have access to traditional lab equipment, and individuals who don’t have quick access to healthcare services.
Created in a collaboration between the Netherlands' Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) and Japan's Keio University, the square paper device requires users to simply place a drop of blood on a marked target area, wait 20 minutes, then turn the paper over and check the color of one of three glowing spots on its underside.
Upon initially being deposited on the paper, the blood mixes with a TU/e-made luminous sensor protein contained within the spot, creating a biochemical reaction that causes the spot to emit blue light … at first, that is.
If the blood is from a non-infected individual, a second step in the reaction will cause the light to subsequently turn green. Should the person be infected, though, antibodies in their blood will bind to the sensor protein, blocking the second step to a certain extent – as a result, the light will at least partially remain blue. A strip containing the kits is pictured below.
Using their smartphone's camera and an app, clinicians can then analyze the color of the spot to determine just where it falls on the blue-to-green spectrum. This will indicate the concentration of the antibodies in the blood, and thus the severity of the infection. Basically speaking, though, it's a matter of the greener the better.
Each of the paper's three spots can be tweaked to react to specific antibodies associated with specific infectious diseases, allowing users to check for three diseases at once. Using that approach, the technology has successfully been used to simultaneously test a single blood sample for HIV, flu and dengue fever so the technology’s potential is huge.
The research, which was led by TU/e's Prof. Maarten Merkx, is described in a paper that was recently published in the journal Angewandte Chemie. It is hoped that the test kits will be commercially available within a few years.
FAQ
Why does this matter?
Not everyone has access to a lab that can process blood tests, so this breakthrough will help people in developing nations diagnose disease faster.
About the author
Matthew Griffin Founder, 311 Institute
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath."
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Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath." 15-time best selling author of the "Codex of the Future" series, Matthew is the Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working with royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77 governments, NGOs, and multi-national mid and mega cap firms to help them explore, shape, and lead the next 50 years of business and society.
An award-winning YouTube creator with over a million followers, with an unrivalled global reach and impact, Matthew is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, lecturer, and mentor who collaborates with global leaders through the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to shape pivotal initiatives such as the UN’s AI for Humanity program, the United Nations Conference of the Parties (UN COP), and the World Economic Forum in Davos.
As the former Global Head of Cloud, National Security, and Enterprise Sales for companies including Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, Matthew has a proven track record of building multi-billion dollar business units and turning failing divisions into market leaders. His ability to identify, analyse, and communicate the implications of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends is unparalleled, and his insights are trusted by many of the world’s most respected organisations, including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi, Coca-Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Dow Jones, EY, Google, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, Siemens AG and Siemens Energy, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, Walmart, Workday, Worldpay and many others.
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Sources and further reading
- Eindhoven University of Technology tue.nl
- Keio University keio.ac.jp
- Anie.201808070 onlinelibrary.wiley.com
- Eindhoven University of Technology tue.nl
Source: first published by the 311 Institute on 26 March 2019. Cite as: Griffin, M. (2019). Simple paper blood test diagnoses disease faster and cheaper. 311 Institute. https://www.311institute.com/simple-paper-blood-test-helps-people-in-developing-nations-diagnose-disease-faster/
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