I read a very interesting scientific article. I have to say, I didn’t understand any of the scientific stuff, but what I did understand is that an amazing 15 year old student invented a new HIV test. I am impressed and very thankful to this girl.

Nicole Ticea, a Grade 10 student at the private girl’s York House School in Vancouver, Canada was collaborating with Simon Fraser University as a part of her school program. The test she developed is as easy to use as a pregnancy test. The users can place a drop of blood on a chip and receive a very quick response to see if they are infected. The whole test was based on Isothermic Nucleic Acid Amplification.
 

The development is there, but it still needs to be tested some more before commercial partners can get involved. Ticea said: “Being in the lab really reinforced what I already knew. That scientific research involves dedication, determination, long hours and a deep-rooted love for the field that makes sacrifices worthwhile”. Well we sure are glad that she got into that lab.
 

Ticea’s test won the first place in the British Columbia 2014 Regional Sanofi BioGENEius Challenge. If this test really ends up working and sells, I hope they give this girl more than some ribbons. Also, the fact that a 15 year old developed a test for HIV shows us that youth is being educated. They know about HIV and some of them actually think about it. So, thank you Nicole. We’re keeping our fingers crossed for this test.